Departure and Arrival: True Destiny of Queens
by Celeste-poet
Summary: After defeating Galaxia,Darien goes back to America.The Starlights come back to Earth to find a new home.Meanwhile,4 sailor scouts show up saying Jupiter-not Serena-is the true queen of the galaxy!However,they may be forced to fight together to defeat their newest enemy...
1. Chapter 1 Departure

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: THIS IS NOT A LITA & SERENA PAIRING. I listed them as the main characters, that's all.  
**

**I also stay in the English name forms. And I'm assuming the story from the anime version, not the manga one.**

Serena had not slept well the entire night. She kept waking up, feeling like she was falling. _This could not be a good sign_, she thought to herself. Maybe Raye could interpret for her.

What could possibly be wrong, though? Galaxia had just been defeated, which was surely the hardest opponent of all. Serena smiled as she thought of Chibi Chibi. What a sweet little girl, much like her own little girl, Rini. The thought of Rini made her wonder if she was coming back from the future soon.

Serena decided she was finally getting up. It was early, especially for her: 7 a.m. She didn't even get up this early on a regular school day. She saw Luna lying in her basket on the other side of the room. She looked so peaceful. Serena decided it was best to leave her alone, plus if Luna found out Serena had the capability to get up this early, she would nag her with every chance she had.

Serena got dressed, put on a little makeup, and decided to visit her Darien first. He could always comfort her, and there was always the chance of Raye picking on Serena for silly dreams. At least Darien could take her seriously. Serena wondered if he was up already_. Oh well, he won't mind seeing me. He said no matter what time of day, I could always come to him. _With this happy thought, Serena started out the door, first leaving a note for her parents, something she rarely did, but it was a gesture so her parents would trust her more. She felt guilty that she never told them about her being Sailor Moon, but that was part of her duty. She could not tell anyone at this point.

As she walked to Darien's apartment, she noticed how peaceful everything was. It had not been this peaceful for a long time. Serena looked to the sky, wondering where the Starlights and their princess were, and hoped they had made it home safe. It would be a long time before she saw them again and she missed them, especially Seiya.

The situation with Seiya was complicated. She did love him…her. Which was it? Did it even matter? Darien never knew about the one and only kiss she had with Seiya, with guilt. It had been when she was saying goodbye to him on his final concert night. She did not want Seiya to be in a one-sided love when she cared for him so. Later, she wondered if she had done the right thing, because she was still supposed to be with Darien. Now she knew why he never contacted her, and felt like she should not have mistrusted her boyfriend so easily. Since he was "dead" though, she was free to be with other men…Oh it was all so complicated. Maybe she could talk to Darien about it too, and apologize for what she had done.

She arrived at his apartment, and knocked on the door. Darien opened the door, already dressed. The smell of tea wafted through. Darien smiled and said, "Serena, what are you doing here? I would have figured you were asleep."

"I know, but I had trouble sleeping. Can I talk to you?" she implored wonderingly.

"Of course, you are always welcome here. Let me get you some tea." Darien gestured for her to come in.

It had been so long since she had been in his apartment. Everything was the same, of course, except for a case of luggage in the corner of the living room. "Why are you packed, Darien? Are you going somewhere?" Serena asked, walking across the room to the luggage.

Darien walked in with the tea and set it on his coffee table. "Yes, Serena. See, I needed to talk to you as well. I'm going back to America."

"What?!" Serena exclaimed. "No way, you aren't going anywhere, mister. Why do you have to go??"

"Serena, Serena….I was trying to get to America before Galaxia showed up," Darien explained.

"I know, and you were killed. Please, it's too dangerous. What if some more evil forces tried again?" Serena demanded.

Darien shook his head. "What are the odds of that happening? Honestly, you kicked their tail straight out of here. Nothing is going to happen for a long time. You will be able to live on, Serena."

Tears gathered in his lover's eyes. "No, I already lost you once. I don't want to lose you again. Stay!" she whined.

Striding over to Serena, Darien held her shoulders and looked in her eyes. "I will always be there for you. But you have to be there for me. Support me with my dream. Please."

Serena averted her gaze. "I will try."

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"Honestly, the Sailor Sailor of the highest Legends has fallen to good? What kind of universe are we living in?" demanded a tall, thin woman with magenta hair. "Honestly, if that had been me, I would rather kill myself than let some wimpy princess turn me to good. The universe does not belong in her hands. She is too generous, too forgiving."

"Europa, let's not get carried away. We still have much to do before we can claim even this solar system as our own. We should find our queen, Jupiter, and lead her to her rightful throne," a younger girl with black hair responded.

It was a dark building, the only shelter the four companions were able to find. Abandoned and forgotten at the edge of town, it was their sanctuary.

There were two girls, one with black hair and in a gray sailor suit, instead of the usual white that most sailors in this solar system had, with dark blue bow and trimming, and cut a little lower as well and tiny-heeled blue shoes. The other had magenta hair, dressed in a similar sailor suit, but with a red bow and trimming and knee-high red boots. The two men, knowing full well how awkward it was to battle in dresses and such, were both in tuxedo-like suits. The one with long silver hair was taller than even most Earth men, and his tux was a dark gray with a maroon shirt, while the shorter one with strangely dark blue hair wore a similar gray suit, with a blue shirt.

The silver-haired one stepped forward. "We know it is dangerous for us to walk about like this. People will notice, especially since you girls look like the famed Sailor Scouts."

"Io, we _are_ Sailor Scouts. Just…not the ones that these people are used to. No one has ever accepted us, and no one ever will," the one called Europa said sharply.

Io shook his head. "Look, I'm just saying we have a need to blend in until we find our target. How hard could it be to find the Moon Princess? Her shining light is the brightest light in the universe."

The shorter guy with blue hair stepped forward, and said in a raspy voice, "She is no Princess as far as I'm concerned. The only one we worship is the goddess of Jupiter!"

"Ganymede, calm yourself down. Soon we will find them. But Io is right, we need to blend in and come up with a plan to force our queen to show her true strength," the black haired girl stated.

Europa cleared her throat. "Look, Callisto and I will go to where most girls in this city 'hang out'. You two should do something similar; perhaps flirt with the locals until you find the right. We know Jupiter is here; we all feel her presence. All we need to do is release her from her bonds of righteousness. She governs the largest planet in the solar system. She should be Queen!"

They all nodded in reply.


	2. Chapter 2 Meeting, But Never Knowing

………………………………………………………………………………………………………….....

At their favorite restaurant downtown, the inner scouts sat discussing Darien with Serena.

"Surely he won't be gone that long. And at least he will write you this time," Ami said as she winked at her blond friend.

"I know, but it's so difficult to leave him again. I just got him back. We didn't even…we didn't talk about 'us', really. After I understood he was set on leaving for America, I left soon after." Serena sank her hand into the palms of her hands.

Lita spoke up. "Well, maybe you two need a day out!"

"He's leaving tomorrow, and he's busy all day today making plans."

Silence won over the table.

"Why is he leaving again so soon?" Mina inquired.

"He's missed so much already, although the professors there understand that there was some sort of plane accident. He's anxious to get to it," Serena said numbly.

Ami patted Serena on the shoulder. "It'll be alright. You'll see. Darien still loves you, you know that. We all do. He gave you that ring, remember?"

Serena looked at her hand. The heart-shaped ring was still there; it never came off. The one time she tried to get it off, it nearly sprained her finger, so she left it alone.

Raye leaned in from across the table. "Hey odango-head, stop being so worried. We are here for you, just like we have been before. Don't forget that."

Serena looked gratefully at her strong-willed friend. "I know. Thank you."

"Hey, I have an idea. Why don't we all go to the movies and see that new Sailor V movie?" Mina asked happily.

Lita rolled her eyes. "Of course you would want to see that. Gee, I wonder who it's about?"

"Why not? Let's go. There's nothing I would want to do right now than go hang out with my best friend in the world," Serena said in a forced voice. Her friends knew better. They knew she really needed Darien—but why was he leaving her so soon? Even if he did miss so much, why didn't he wait until the next semester? These thoughts lingered in everyone's minds.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

The theatre was unusually packed for it being a matinee. "I guess because it's the first day out," Ami said as the group scooted through the lines.

"Or maybe it's because everyone wants to see me—I mean Sailor V!" Mina exclaimed.

Raye gave her a warning glance, but said nothing.

The movie was a recap of Sailor V's life before the Sailor Scouts appeared. At the very end, she introduced herself to the scouts, becoming their unquestionable leader.

"Very cool, thought. But they totally have my hair wrong," the real Sailor Venus sighed.

Standing outside the theatre were two very handsome men. One was extremely tall with long silver hair and in a tight black shirt and jeans. His blue-haired friend stood close by, wearing similar clothes.

"Oh. My. Goodness. They're. Hot!!" Mina exclaimed.

"That silver-haired one looks like my old boyfriend," Lita observed.

"Not everyone in the world can be your ex, Lita," Raye said exasperatedly.

Serena smirked at her friends. Neither one could compare to Darien—or Seiya.

Ami said quietly, "The shorter one is kinda cute. I wonder what his name is?"

"Why don't you go ask?" Lita said, giving her timid friend a shove in the guys' direction. "Phone numbers would be nice too," she said quickly.

Ami stepped back. "No, no, I could never walk up to any stranger and just ask that. It's a little rude and I don't even know what they're like."

Lita sighed. "Fine, I guess I will go ask them myself." She bravely stepped forward and addressed the two men. "Hi. I'm Lita. What are your names?"

The silver-haired one replied smoothly, "I'm Io—Iovan. This is my friend Gany." The shorter guy nodded.

Lita, not knowing what else to say, and obviously nervous, began chattering. "So, uh, are you from around here? Haven't seen you before, but I could always just be around the corner and never know it!"

Gany lifted an eyebrow to his partner. Iovan got the hint. "Listen, uh, we were wondering—do you have any friends who are known for their strength? We are into really strong girls."

Lita smiled. "Really? Because my friends consider me pretty strong." Her four friends, hiding a few feet behind a small crowd, all looked around the people and nodded in support of their friend.

"That's interesting. I—" Iovan was cut short by a short beep. He brought out of his pocket a small star-shaped pen that was glowing.

"We have to go now," the raspy Gany stated shortly. He and Iovan quickly strode down the street.

The other four crept up to Lita. "Aw, you were close. Next time, maybe?" Mina asked.

Lita sighed. "Yeah, maybe next time."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

"Why have you called us here?" an angry silver-haired man demanded.

"I found what we are looking for. This has to be her." Europa pointed one long, red fingernail at a muscular young woman, passed out on the floor.

"That's her? If she's so strong, why is she passed out on the floor?" Ganymede inquired.

"Well, she didn't want to come. A little resistance. Nothing I couldn't handle." Europa held her head up high.

"You idiot! If that was the true Jupiter, your power would not overcome hers! She is the only one to defeat us!" Io yelled.

The building was silent. Callisto spoke up. "So what do we do with her?"

"Kill her. We need no witnesses. We need the true Jupiter, the Queen who would not refuse her destiny," Ganymede spoke coldly.


	3. Chapter 3 The Past Still Haunts

The girls had decided to go to Serena's house for some vegging out. When they walked in the front door, Mrs. Tsukino called out to Serena, "Some guy named Darien called. Said he needed to see you!"

Ami, Lita, Raye, and Mina stopped in their tracks. Serena turned around to look at her friends. "Go," Raye urged. "You two need to talk."

Serena smiled gratefully at her friends. "Thank you." Then she ran full speed to Darien's apartment. She didn't stop until she reached his front door. Panting, she knocked rapidly.

Darien opened the door and asked, "Serena, darling, are you okay? Did you run all the way here?"

She nodded. Smiling, he let her in.

On the couch, they sat side by side, with Darien holding Serena's hands in his. "I'm sorry, I realized I didn't give you much time to say goodbye. But I had the feeling you had more to say. What's bothering you?"

Serena looked into his eyes. They weren't quite like Seiya's, nor was his scent. His arms, his hands—it was all so different. But she knew that Darien would be her king someday. Why fight destiny?

"I—It's not important."

"Yes, it is." Darien remained persistent. "Tell me, bunny."

Serena smirked at this little name, and felt more at peace. "Okay, but don't be upset. See, while you were gone, I fell in love with someone else. I still love you, and always did. I wrote to you every day…but when I realized you were not replying,I gave up." Tears gathered in her eyes. "I'm sorry I'm so weak. I should have held on longer."

"No, no it's okay. I understand."

"No…you don't. I…I kissed him. Her." Serena still never knew what to classify Seiya as.

"Him…her? Are you kidding me?" Darien asked.

"It's complicated." _You have no idea._ "She was one of the Starlights. At first, in her human form, which was male, she hit on me. At first I rejected him, but ended up falling for him and him for me. Then when we found out we were both Scouts, well, things got interesting. But Seiya was there at a time when I needed someone. I'm so sorry." Serena started to cry.

Darien wrapped his arms around his girlfriend. "It's okay, little bunny. I understand. Maybe if the same thing had happened to me, something similar would have resulted. The question now is, do you still love Seiya?"

Serena hesitated, but nodded.

"Well, that's okay too. These things take time."

Oh, Darien could be so understanding. Serena wondered how she ever ended up with a strong man like him.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Kinmoku had been utterly destroyed, except for one block of rock on which the Starlights and Kakyuu stood upon. Seiya bent her head down, remembering all those whom had been lost in battle. She was grateful to Serena for ending the war, but so much had been lost already.

Oh, Serena. That moon goddess with the long blonde hair—she seemed to follow Seiya to the far reaches of the universe.

"Healer, do you think you can bring this planet back?" Sailor Star Maker inquired.

"You have a better chance of making a planet than I do of healing this one," Healer replied.

Kakyuu spoke in her eloquent way. "Surely we can do something. This rock cannot be all that we have. We have each other, and through each other we can create a home, a place for us. If not, perhaps the Moon Princess would be willing to accommodate for us."

Excited at the prospect of seeing her again, Fighter spoke up. "Is that possible? Would they really do something for us?"

The other three turned to look at Sailor Star Fighter. They knew of her love for Serena, and her eagerness to reach Earth again was because of the Moon Princess. "We will see. We will return to Earth if we do not find a suitable home here in this system," Kakyuu spoke wisely.

Seiya could hardly contain her excitement.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Serena and Darien sat on his couch. Having just confessed she still loved Seiya, Serena realized that despite Darien saying it was okay, he felt uncomfortable. He had not met her eyes since her confession.

"Darien?"

"Yes, bunny?"

"Are you sure you're okay?" Serena asked.

"Yes…it's just difficult to realize. But I know you love me. I will surely always love you. We both know we will be married one day. I just want to know if you will stay faithful to me, should Seiya ever come back," Darien stated.

Serena turned her head to the side and lifted Darien's head to meet her eyes. "I will _always_ love you."

Darien nodded. "Today will be our last day together for a while. So I was wondering---" Darien didn't even get to finish his thought. Serena had pulled him in for a long lip-lock. As she kissed him, she felt the warmth of his lips that seemed to permeate throughout her body. Darien wrapped his arms around her, and held her tight. They stayed in this position for several minutes before Darien broke their kiss off. "Do you want to stay the night?"

_Stay the night? What kind of girl does he think I am? But this is his last night_…Serena thought about it for a moment, and said, "Yes, but on one condition."

"What's that?"

"Don't stop."

Darien smiled and pulled Serena in close again.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"I'm getting impatient. Where is our queen?!" Io shouted.

The four had gathered back at their domain after a failed day of searching. Now Io was in Europa's face with a threatening attitude.

"Answer me!"

"Look, Io, we have been searching the entire day. All of us have. It is not like we have a time limit. No one knows we are here," Europa snapped back.

Io became even angrier. "That does not mean we have time to play around! The sooner we find Jupiter, the sooner this universe will become the perfect one we have all dreamed of."

"We all know why you want her back. In our old incarnation, you loved her, didn't you?" Callisto slyly asked while she brushed through her black hair.

Io stood silent, then spoke slowly, "My feelings for her are beside the point. We are so close to her and getting our kingdom to rule again."

Ganymede spoke in his usual raspy voice, "Maybe we should enlist the other moons to help us."

"Now that is one thing I agreed with Io on. If we are the four that find her, we will be her highest stations in her kingdom. We will be known as the truest and most loyal of her subjects," Europa declared. "After all, we are the most powerful of the moons of Jupiter. It would only be the right thing."

"There is a time for the others, but they are to be called here at a later time. Right now, the mission is to locate Queen Jupiter. Then we can carry out the rest of the plan," Io pronounced.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

The entire Sailor Scout team, except for Serena, was meeting at Raye's shrine in the large fireplace room. Everyone said down in a semicircle facing the fire, while Artemis and Luna laid down facing the girls.

Luna spoke up. "I have called you all here to speak to you about important things. Serena's absence is my doing; I want her to take a rest from this whole business. She also needs to be with Darien at this time. Therefore, she is excused. However, the rest of you need to listen up."

"Are we in trouble?" Ami inquired.

"Yes and no. I needed to speak to you about the last battle. I understand you were all killed in action. You were not able to save Serena from Galaxia and protect her as well as you could have. The Starlights are from another galaxy, and they were able to the very end, for Pete's sake! Why could you not do so?" Luna demanded.

"It was difficult. Galaxia was a different kind of enemy. The Starlights had faced her before. Of course they could withstand her longer," Lita replied defensively.

Artemis sat up from his lounging position. "Luna, give it a rest. Serenity saved us all. Do we really need to question this anymore?"

Luna ignored him. "I also would like to know what the hell you think you were doing, Uranus and Neptune! Betraying us all like that—you are fortunate that Serena asked me to forgive you." She herself sat up and glared at the two outer scouts.

Amara raised her eyebrows. "We did what we thought was the right thing. Distracting the enemy seemed like a good plan," she said coldly.

Michelle ran her fingers through her aquamarine hair. "What we did may have warranted the removal of our posts and disgrace, but we know that we did the right thing. Serena knows our true intentions."

Luna squinted her eyes at the pair. "And you won't do it again?"

"Can't guarantee anything. If necessary, it may be useful to use the same ruse." Amara crossed her arms.

Luna sighed. "All right then. I guess I can't ask for anything more."

Artemis queried, "Did you call us here for any other reason than to chew out the Scouts?"

"Of course I did, Artemis," Luna snapped. She regained her composure. "I want to talk about Serena. I am worried about her. I think this last battle affected more than you could possibly know."

"What do you mean?" asked little Hotaru. "What's wrong with her?"

"She has not been sleeping well."

"She never does," remarked Raye, shaking her head.

"Raye! I am serious. Lately she has been calling all of your names in her sleep, begging for you not to leave. I believe it is recollections of the battle itself." Luna decided not to mention that fact that Serena cried for Seiya in her sleep. That was Serena's business. "She also cries out, wishing she would stop falling. I get little sleep myself from this. I tried to sleep in this morning, and was worried when I woke up and Serena was gone. I later learned she went to Darien's, but not knowing where she was bothered me. I am her guardian, after all."

"Why did she not see Raye? Raye is our interpreter of dreams," Trista quietly stated.

"I can answer that. She probably didn't trust you Raye. I know you pick on her a lot; maybe she was afraid to confide in you," Artemis answered.

Raye stayed silent, but looked rather disappointed.

"In any case, we should find out what's going on. Maybe we can let Serena know that we will always be there for here," Lita declared.

Luna purred in agreement. Stretching her feline legs, she stood up and looked at the scouts. "It is our responsibility to look after our Princess. I fear we may become too relaxed and not expect the worst; we must not be caught off-guard as we have been before."

"Well, what can we do in the meantime? It has been almost two weeks since the battle with Galaxia. What are you suggesting, practice by fighting crime or something?" Mina asked skeptically.

"It's a possibility. Lord knows that the policemen around here could use a hand every once in awhile. You know that better than anyone, Sailor V. You did those sorts of things in your solo career," Luna said.

Mina and Artemis nodded, remembering those early days.

"Well, let's go see Serena! We can all cheer her up," Hotaru exclaimed happily.

"No good, Hotaru. She's with Darien tonight. She called me to cover for her tonight, and to tell her parents she's at my house," Mina remarked with a smirk. "Tomorrow, though, we should all go see Serena."

"Not all at once, though. Perhaps one at a time would be best. It's better one-on-one than all of us talking to her about her feelings," Ami suggested.

"Okay, then, that is settled. But I have the first word. I just wanted to let you girls know how your friend is really doing," Luna said.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"Seiya, don't leave me. Thank you, Seiya. Girls, girls, don't go! Don't leave me here alone!!"

Darien had watched Serena for a few minutes going through this episode of panic. He was tempted to wake her up, until she spoke Seiya's name. Now he sat at Serena's side, watching her.

"Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus! Pluto, what is happening to you? Saturn! You can't die! Neptune and Uranus, what have you done? Oh please, Seiya, please tell me they are still my friends!" Serena cried out.

Darien hung his head down. He now knew how horrible it must have been for Eternal Sailor Moon to battle it out with the most demonic Sailor of all, while her friends were dying all around her. At least she saved her friends, though, in the end.

"Darien, no! You killed Darien? How could you, you evil witch?! Damn you!" She screamed and cried stead y streams of tears. "No, I'm falling too! I'm sorry, I wasn't strong enough, everyone…"

Darien noticed her twitching and shaking in the bed and shook her himself. "Serena, darling, wake up."

She opened her innocent eyes wide. "Wha--what's wrong?" she mumbled.

"You were having a bad dream, I believe."

"Really? Because I don't remember. I only remember falling…I've been feeling this way for a little while now." Serena sat up in the bed.

Darien whispered, "You should have told me about it." He kissed her sweet little lips.

"I meant to, but then you said you were leaving for America. I did not want to worry you about it."

Darien sighed. "Serena, Serena, I told you; tell me anything your heart desires."She smiled at him. "But I have to say though, you called out Seiya's name too."

This startled Serena for a moment, and then she spoke. "Really?" _Oops. I wonder what I said_, she thought.

"Yes, but I think you were reliving your battle moments. I suppose it would be perfectly natural for you to call out his—her name." Darien was apparently still getting used to the idea of a sex-changing person.

"Oh." Serena curled up to Darien. "But I love you. I probably missed you too, right? In my dream?"

"Yes, you—you cursed her for killing me."

"Wow, I never curse. That must have been one heck of a dream. I'm so glad I don't remember it." Serena hugged Darien even tighter.

"I'm glad too." Darien stroke Serena's hair, thinking he never wanted to leave her. It was a shame he had already promised to go, too.


	4. Chapter 4 Attack

"Serena! Thank heavens you're safe. I have been worried about you. I had to find out from your friends concerning your whereabouts!" Luna exclaimed as her blonde princess walked into her room.

"Oh calm it, Luna. You know I'm okay." Serena collapsed onto her bed. _Why does that darn cat have to always bother me?_

Luna jumped onto the bed. "I was just worried about you, dear. I do nothing but guard you, but it's rather difficult to guard someone whose whereabouts are unknown." She nuzzled Serena's cheek. "What's wrong, my dear?"

_Maybe Luna's not that bad. I should stop worrying her so much_. "I just said goodbye to Darien at his apartment. I couldn't say it at the airport. I'm scared of that place, since…" Serena's voice trailed off.

"I know."

Knock knock. "Serena, are you talking to someone in there? I heard voices." Serena's mother called out from the other side of the door.

"Just Luna, Mom. What's up?" Serena sat up and stroked Luna. Luna purred in bliss.

Serena's mother walked in. "Hi, dear. Your friend Lita called. She's making cookies and wanted to know if you wanted any."

"You bet I do!" Serena jumped up, completely forgetting Luna was in her lap. Luna fell to the floor, on all fours, of course, but meowed at Serena. "Oops, sorry Luna. Come on, you can come with me. Lita loves seeing you." She scooped Luna in her arms and headed out to Lita's.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Mina and Ami walked around downtown, looking for something to cheer Serena up.

"What about a good book?" Ami inquired, eying the bookshop on the corner.

"Ami," Mina groaned. "The only kind of book Serena will bother to try and read is a comic book. I doubt she would really read something like _Elements and Their Rightful Place in the Universe_."

"Really? Because I thought that book was really interesting."

The duo kept walking until they heard sirens. "Do you hear what I hear, Ami?" Mina asked.

"I sure do."

"I think it's Sailor Scout time."

"Oh, could you make that sound any cheesier? I know Luna said we needed to fight regular crime too, but don't make it sound so awful," Ami said.

"Look," Mina said. "There's the crime! Two burglars are breaking into that diamond shop! Come on, let's run in that alley! I know of a trash can we can transform in!"

"A trash can?" Ami questioned skeptically. "I think the alley will do just fine. It's awful cluttered and no one is ever down there."

The two girls rushed off to transform.

Meanwhile, the two masked burglars were commenting on their plan. "Ok, we've got the goods. Surely some sort of Scout would notice us by now?" the taller one asked.

A raspy voice replied, "Yes, and when they come, we will finally find our Jupiter. She is on the side of good now, but once we have her, she will transform into her true eternal self."

"All right, you bad guys. Come out now, or else we will have to punish you!" Sailor V cried out. "I am Sailor Venus, champion of love and justice!"

"I am Sailor Mercury, protector and guardian and knowledge of truth!" Mercury stuck an offensive stance.

"In the name of Mercury and Venus, we shall punish you!" the two scouts shouted.

"Damnit, neither one of them is Jupiter." The tall burglar swore to himself in native Jovian tongue.

"Stop your jabbering. Why don't we grab one of them? Surely Jupiter would come looking for her friend?" answered a raspy voice.

"We don't want both. One of them needs to carry the message back to Jupiter."

"Right, then. Which one do you want?" asked the shorter man.

"That little blonde one."

"Got it."

The burglars stepped out and whipped off their masks and cloaks. Underneath, to the shock of Sailor Venus and Sailor Mercury, were tuxedos similar to their own Tuxedo Mask's, just in different colors.

"Just who do you think you are?" demanded Venus.

"I don't have time to talk with you, little girl. Shadow Evolution!" From Ganymede's hand erupted sharp razors of darkness. Venus screamed as they shot to her.

"Ahhhhh!" Mercury had stepped in the Venus's way at the very last possible second. She collapsed to the ground, with her right arm soaked in black liquid. Venus gasped as she looked closer at the wound. It looked like blood.

"Mercury!" Sailor V cried out.

"Shadow Evolution!"

Bent over her fallen comrade, Sailor V never saw it coming.


	5. Chapter 5 Missing Scouts

Lita heard a knock on her door. Opening it up, she found Serena sniffing the air. "Mmmm! Cookies!" Serena exclaimed happily.

"Well, don't just stand there. Come in, come in. Hey Luna! It's good to see you too. Make yourselves comfortable—I'll be right back," Lita said.

Serena plopped herself on a gray couch while Luna hit a power button on the remote control. Instead of turning on the television, though, it turned off the lights in the apartment.

"Serena! Leave the buttons alone!" shouted Lita from the kitchen.

"It wasn't me this time!" Serena called back.

"My fault, I apologize. Blasted technological things." Luna pouted.

Lita returned to the living room with steaming chocolate chip cookies. "Ooh, my favorite!" Serena said happily.

Lita sat down next to Serena. "Have as many as you like. Now Luna, _this_ is the remote control for the TV." She clicked on the television and a news reporter came on. Lita turned her head away to face Serena. "So, Serena, how have you been doing lately?"

"Shh!" interrupted Luna. "Look!" She gestured towards the television.

A reporter had come on, and was talking live outside of a jewelry store. "And here is where the burglars came through and attacked two Sailor Scouts with some sort of dark blades." The reporter walked over to another area, not far from the broken glass of the front door. "And police say that in that direction is where the two men took off with the Scouts. No leads yet, but we will keep you posted."

"Call around. Immediately. We need to know who's missing," Luna ordered. "Now!"

Lita flipped her communicator out. "Calling all Scouts. Who's there and who's not?"

"Raye here. Keep it down, would you? The shrine visitors are looking at me funny."

"Michelle and Amara here. These sure are handy little things."

"Trista here."

"Hotaru here!"

"Anyone else?" asked Lita.

Silence ruled the lines. "So I guess that means Mercury and Venus are gone," concluded Luna.

Serena sat, shaking. Luna and Lita noticed, and immediately tried to calm her. "It'll be okay; we'll get them back. We always do," Lita said comfortingly.

The blonde took a few deep breaths and whispered, "I'll be okay."

Amara spoke up. "What's with the roll call?"

"Did you see the news? Two scouts were kidnapped. Venus and Mercury didn't reply, so I'm assuming it's them," answered Lita.

"And your assumption would be correct, my lady." A cold, distant voice echoed over the communicator line.

"Who are you?!" demanded Lita.

"You must be Jupiter. Surely you are, with that strong voice and defiant attitude. We have been looking for you," answered the strange voice.

Lita said quietly aloud, "I have heard him somewhere before. But where?"

"Tell us who you are!" This time Serena had taken control, and was being the demanding one, an unusual characteristic for her.

"Calm down. Your friends will be okay. All we need is Jupiter at the abandoned Lakeside high rises by sundown. Is that too much to ask for?" taunted the man.

"Listen, punk. I'll be there, and you're going to regret you ever messed with my friends!" Lita yelled into the communicator.

"I wonder how they figured out the communicators," Luna wondered quietly.

"They? It only sounds like one, Luna." Serena looked at her cat quizzically.

"Weren't you paying attention? There were two men who captured our Scouts. So there are two of them in this together. I suppose they heard us broadcasting to the other scouts…I need to find a safer way to communicate."

Lita sighed. "Why do they want me?"

Luna said, "I don't know, but one thing I do know; you can't go."

"No! What about our friends?" Serena asked hysterically. "You can't let them die!"

"They won't die," Luna said calmly. "They have been through worse I'm sure. We must figure out a plan first. Let's call Ami—oh wait." The cat sighed. "Of course those men would have to take the brains of our group."

"Let's contact Artemis first. Why wasn't he with Mina in the first place?" Lita wondered.

Luna answered, "He was catching up on updating our technologies. I guess I'll have to tell him about updating communicators for private use only, but right now he needs to know about Mina. He's going to be so heartbroken when he finds out."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Brilliant plan. Oh, and what pretty little outfits they have on. I know these two by sight: Sailor Venus and Sailor Mercury. You made a great catch," remarked Europa.

"Yes, well, since no one noticed you and Callisto robbing that bank, Ganymede and I had to create a greater stir," Io replied smoothly.

Callisto suggested, "That, or those Scouts just happened to be at the right place at the right time…or should I say the wrong place at the wrong time, for them?" She giggled.

"In any case, this was a brilliant find. That Mercury is famed to be of the smartest in the solar system. Those Scouts are without a plan for sure," Ganymede declared.

Europa sniffed. "Let's hope so. Last night I need is a bunch of wimpy little Scouts to deal with. We just want the one, the only Jupiter."

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

"This is pure trouble. You know it, I know it." Amara stood facing Michelle with her arms crossed. They were in their living with with Trista and Hotaru, discussing what they should do next. Since the conversation between the captor, Lita, and Serena were over the communicators, every Scout was able to hear what was going on.

Hotaru said, "I don't feel a need to void this world. But I do feel a revolution may be coming; it may be something we were not ever expecting before."

The other three sat quietly, thinking on Hotaru's words, wondering what they meant. Then the phone rang. "I'll get it," Michelle said quietly as she strode to the phone. "Hello?" Amara, Trista, and Hotaru looked anxiously at her. "It's Lita. She wants us to come with her."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"Nothing. There is nothing to claim. No suitable habitat, no place for us. We are outcasts." Taiki hung her head down, the most emotion that she had ever allowed anyone to see. The Starlights and their Princess stood upon a meteorite that was not much bigger than what was left of their home planet.

Yaten touched her shoulder. "Surely there is a place for us. What is it you suggest, Princess Kakyuu?"

The Princess looked thoughtfully at each one of them before answering with her usual grace and poise. "I think it is time to go back to Earth."

Seiya raised her eyebrows. "Really?"

"Fighter, do not get your hopes up. You know she is back with him," spoke Taiki. By "she" and "him," they knew Taiki meant Serena and Darien.

Seiya nodded, keeping her inner happiness inside. Butterflies danced in her moon, with a radiant blonde princess encouraging them on.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

"Calling by phone was a brilliant idea. And you say Serena came up with it?" joked Raye.

What was left of the Scouts had assembled in the Shrine fireplace room again.

"Yes, Serena came up with it. We sat for a full ten minutes not knowing what to do, but Serena thought of the simplest solution of all. You should give her a little credit," snapped Luna.

Artemis walked in, the last to arrive. His usually beautiful kitty eyes were slightly pink. One could tell that the kidnapping of Venus had taken a toll on him already. The room fell silent as he solemnly walked into the room.

Serena cleared her throat. "So, ah, what are we going to do?"

Everyone stared at her. Normally she would be the last to ask, and the last to get herself into a battle. She was even a little surprised at herself. _Careful, Serena, they may think that this affects you more than you could ever express, _she told herself. Just the thought of losing one friend caused her anguish—but two? It was more than she could contemplate.

Though taken aback, Luna answered first. "We are going to transform and follow Lita in secret. Artemis can pass as a stray cat, and secretly look for Mina while he's at it. I wish we had more time; we could check out every corner of those abandoned high rises for good spots to hide and ambush. We should arrive a bit early, I suppose, and try to find places to conceal ourselves."

"Well, we had better hurry, then. It's almost sundown as it is," Michelle remarked.

"Right then. Scouts, prepare yourselves!" Luna ordered.

"Eternal Moon! Make-up!"

"Saturn Planet Power!"

"Jupiter Star Power!"

"Mars Star Power!"

"Pluto Planet Power!"

"Neptune Planet Power!"

"Uranus Planet Power!"


	6. Chapter 6 Approaching the Enemy

The Sailor Scouts stopped one block shy of their destination. "Ok, listen, I need you to pay attention very carefully. I am unsure of our enemies'' intentions, so I want you to be prepared." Luna studied her scouts. "But don't be afraid. Fear can be felt from far away." The girls nodded.

Jupiter looked ahead. "I just want to get this over with. We need Venus and Mercury back."

"You do realize why they may want you, right?" Artemis queried.

"No." She looked at the white cat, puzzled.

"You are a very strong Scout. Jupiter is the largest planet in this solar system. These men may seek your power. The fact they are quite familiar with the Sailor Scouts worries me," answered Artemis.

Luna nuzzled her feline friend. "We'll find Mina and Ami, don't worry."

Sailor Uranus stepped forward. "We should start splitting up and circle this place."

Luna started giving order. "Yes,Uranus. You and Neptune can follow straight behind Jupiter, at a distance. Sailor Mars and Eternal Sailor Moon—" "Awww," the duo moaned. "—I need you two to go around the building and see if you can attack from behind, if necessary. Sailors Saturn and Pluto, go around from the side. We are going to surround them as much as possible. Come in at the right time."

The scouts nodded. Sailor Jupiter began her march to the heart of the building. The others began to find their stations.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

"She should be here soon." Callisto smiled. "It's almost sunset."

Io nodded. "Fortunately, she doesn't know about the two of you. For the moment, I need you to go to that corridor and take our captives there. I certainly have no intention of giving her friends back."

Callisto looked troubled. "Why not? If nothing else, we should be Sailor Soldiers of our word."

"I know, but in order for her to begin the transformation to Queen Jupiter, she needs to release an extreme amount of anger."

"Wait, isn't that dangerous?" Ganymede questioned.

"Only for a short time." Io looked triumphant. "It will be worth it to have her back. And in order for her to become that angry, we shall keep her friends away. Being the passionate person that she is, she will demand them back, and when she becomes enraged, we shall see her full force."

Europa stated, "I bet she brought friends. Whenever you tell a person to show up alone, they never do. Even our Jupiter would not be that stupid to walk into a trap alone." She looked expectedly at Io.

"Well, then, you will take care of them, now won't you?" Io growled.

"But of course."

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Sailor Mars started getting impatient. "Where exactly is the front, anyways? This place is like a maze!"

"Mars, chill out. I'm sure we go in this direction. We've been all around this building." Sailor Moon didn't want to listen to her grouchy partner complain. _Isn't it strange,_ she thought, _normally I'm the one who whines._ Contemplating this, she realized she was finally beginning to mature. _I'm finally going to be the strong leader that everyone needs!_ This thought excited her.

Mars stared at her with one eyebrow raised. "What are you smiling for?"

The blonde sailor scout snapped out of her thoughts. "Oh, uh—I'll tell you later." Now was not the time to share those thoughts, especially if she was to do something klutzy.

The duo continued their way into the building. "I knew it. How brave Jupiter is—she brought her little pals along," said a spiteful voice.

"Who are you?" demanded Sailor Mars.

A figure stepped out of the shadows. "I'm Sailor Europa. And you are not going to live much longer, so it would be better for you if you don't struggle. Maybe our queen will be generous enough to let you live—though I doubt it," sneered the woman with magenta hair.

Sailor Moon asked, "Who is your queen?"

"Why, Queen Jupiter, of course."

"Jupiter?!" Mars and Moon exclaimed in unison.

"Yes. Now hold still." Europa raised her arms to attack.

"No way, we're not going down without a fight!" Mars called her attack first. "Flame Sniper!" She shot two arrows at Sailor Europa.

Europa chuckled. "Glacier Storm!" she called.

Hundred of little icicles flew out of her hands and as they approached Sailor Moon and Sailor Mars, they came together to form one giant block of ice. Mars' arrows sank into the ice.

"Aiieeee!" the girls screamed.

They ducked, and missed the majority of the ice. However, Mars did not duck low enough for the ice to miss her head. Moon looked to her partner and saw Mars' head encased in ice. Unable to breathe, Sailor Mars passed out on the ground.

"Now your turn, pretty little girl." Europa aimed at Sailor Moon.

_Hey, dummy, use your wings_, Sailor Moon thought to herself. _What about Raye, though? Will she be okay? _She quickly glanced at her fallen companion. _There's nothing you can do for her right now. Get out while you still can._

Eternal Sailor Moon extended her wings and jumped in the air. Simultaneously, Europa attacked. "Glacier Storm!" Sailor Moon pushed herself as far up as she could. Having not ever tested the fullness of her wings, though, she became unsteady and began to fall. _It's just like that dream…NO!_

A wall of ice engulfed her.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Sailor Jupiter kept walking into the building, looking around every time she heard a noise. She then began to hear screams. "Hello?" she called out. No one answered. _Guess I'll just keep going,_ she thought. The idea of her friends being in trouble bothered her though. Jupiter did not look behind her, though she hoped Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus were keeping her in sight.

She came to a half-built corridor. At the end of it, she saw her two friends lying on the ground. "Mercury! Venus!" she started to run to their bodies.

"Oh, I wouldn't do that if I were you." A raspy-voiced figure stepped out of the shadows to her left.

"And why not?" answered Jupiter angrily.

"Because…" Ganymede stepped aside to reveal two more scouts, Uranus and Neptune, hurt in the same manner as Mercury and Venus.

"What have you done?" cried out Sailor Jupiter.

"We just want your cooperation." A small figure with black hair in a gray sailor suit appeared on Jupiter's right. She stepped aside to reveal the figures of Sailor Pluto and Sailor Saturn, both of whom looked very wet and as if they had been electrified.

"No!" Jupiter started towards her.

"But yet another surprise for you, Mistress Jupiter." This time the taunting voice came from behind Jupiter. She turned around to see Sailor Moon trapped in ice, a frozen icicle angel, and Sailor Mars with her head as a block of ice. Jupiter gasped. _I wonder if they're still alive._

Another suited man came out of the shadows from where Mercury and Venus were laying. "Hello, my dear Jupiter. We have searched for you for a long time."

_Me?_ "Look, I don't know what you want, but at least let my friends go. Let me know they're still alive!" Jupiter yelled.

"Very well then." Io went to Sailor Mars and Moon and put his hand on the ice blocks. Instantly they were melted away. He then proceeded to direct his partners to put the bodies together. All of the scouts were brought before Sailor Jupiter. They slowly moved around, but groaned because of their numerous injuries.

"Who are you people anyway?" Jupiter demanded.

The silver-haired man stepped forward. "I am Sailor Io, a moon soldier of Jupiter."

The black-haired girl stepped forward. "I am Sailor Callisto, another moon solider of Jupiter."

The blue-haired man stepped forward. "I am Sailor Ganymede, yet another Jupiter moon soldier."

"And I," said a wild-eyed woman with magenta hair who also stepped forward, "am Sailor Europa, a moon solider of Jupiter."

"And what is it that you want?" questioned Sailor Jupiter.

"We wish for you to be our Queen. You are the true Queen, the ruler of this solar system," stated Io.

"Hey, wait a minute." Sailor Moon squeaked out. "Not to be power-hungry or whatever, but last I checked, I was Princess."

"You are not the true ruler." Ganymede squinted his eyes at her. "Your lineage is far from pure. Your grandfather stole the title many years ago from the ruler of Jupiter and made his home on the moon. Did no one tell you about your history? He was a type of dictator for some time and killed those who threatened to tell the galaxy of his doings. He tried to pass it off as Jupiter bestowing the honor upon him because Jupiter was dying and had no heir. But we Jovians know the truth. The heir was kept secret. That was your mother, Jupiter. Later, she grew up and married a Jovian, and took up her place as a Sailor Scout when Serenity took over as the Moon Queen. You are the daughter of that heir, and therefore the true ruler of this solar system."


	7. Chapter 7 Queen Jupiter

Sailor Jupiter could hardly believe her ears. "Me? A Princess?"

"Actually, the correct term would be Queen, your Highness." Io bent on one knee before her. The others did the same.

_Me? Queen Jupiter? Hey, that does have a ring to it. _She shook her head. _Snap out of it, Jupiter. They're trying to trick you. Get your friends out of here ASAP!_ "No way. That's unbelievable. Even if it was true, Princess Serena deserves to rule."

"Oh, how loyal you are. But you are incorrect. That little girl whom your call your Princess is nothing more than a weak pacifist. She does not fight like a Sailor Soldier! There is no honor with her!" Sailor Europa said through gritted teeth. "She tried to fly away from me. Coward much?"

"Hey, I was trying to avoid your attack, you stupid person. I was NOT avoiding anything," Sailor Moon retorted.

"Oh yeah? What about when you fought Galaxia? You did not destroy her—you just flooded her with peace! At one point, it is said that you even refused to fight! You are no true Sailor Soldier and you are no true Princess, much less Queen!" yelled Sailor Callisto.

Sailor Moon bent her head down. "I did the right thing."

"Shut up!" Europa sent a small slice of ice that froze Sailor Moon's mouth.

"Hey! Leave her alone!" Jupiter stepped forward and clenched her fists.

"That's right. Get angry." Sailor Io smiled.

"You bet I'm angry. Let them go! You can have me," Jupiter offered.

Io shook his head. "Sorry, but in order to make you obey, we will have to keep them."

"Make me obey? I thought I was your Queen!"

"You don't believe it yet, so we will make you realize your true power."

"Let them go!" Jupiter prepared an attack. "Jupiter Supreme Thunder Dragon!"

Her powerful thunder attack was shattered by a wall of fire and ice. Io and Europa put their hands down. "I thought you told me we would not be able to defeat her if she is the true Queen!" Europa whispered frantically.

"Patience, Europa. She is just getting started." Io winked at her.

Even more furious, Jupiter prepared another attack. "Don't, Jupiter!" shrieked a few of the Scouts.

"Sparkling Wide Pressure!" Jupiter threw a jolt of lightning at the four Jovian moon sailors.

Again, it was stopped by Io and Europa, with the help of Callisto this time. "She's getting stronger," commented Io, obviously pleased.

"Just let them go!" yelled Jupiter.

Callisto simply stated, "No."

"Then I will make you---for sure! Jupiter Oak Evolution!" Jupiter spun and her leaves of power flew at Io, Callisto, Ganymede, and Europa. This time it took all four of them to stop the attack.

Frustrated, Jupiter sighed. _This is so hard. They are just so powerful. But why aren't they attacking me? _"You called Sailor Moon a coward, and yet you won't fight me!"

Io said, "We don't need to. Your anger is enough for us."

"Just stop, Jupiter! We'll be okay," cried out Sailor Saturn.

"Don't you see? They're trying to make you attack them! Don't let them taunt you like this! Don't do what they want!" shouted Sailor Mercury.

Jupiter took a deep breath. She gathered as much strength as she could, thinking of only freeing her friends. "Jupiter Typhoon!" Suddenly the entire high-rise was filled with wind and rain, the fury of a strong storm. Furious winds tore at all of the Scouts, for the hurricane had grown out of Jupiter's control. It extended outside of the building, so that those who worked downtown noticed a freak storm and reported it to their local weather agency.

"That's it! Keep it going!" Io called.

The wind surrounded them all and eventually circled around Sailor Jupiter. Suddenly she was lifted into the air and began a transformation. Her brunette hair unfolded from the high ponytail and grew long and wavy, with more red color in it. It curled and twisted as it grew longer and longer. She threw her head back, and her clothes began to change. "It really is her," Io said in awe. Lita's shirt grew longer and wider, red as rubies. Her shoes became sharp red stilettos. Turning, her top part of the dress became ruby red and laced around her arms and wrapped pink lace around one of her fingers on each hand. Her tiara morphed into a crown, with a point upwards and a green emerald on top. Her eyes sparkled as she landed on the ground gracefully. Her hair finished wrapping up into a braid.

Where Sailor Jupiter once stood was a Queen of the planet Jupiter.


	8. Chapter 8 The Truth May Hurt

"My Queen." Io walked over to her. "You are truly are beautiful, as beautiful—no, more beautiful than I remember. I am in your service." He bowed to her. The other three moon scouts of Jupiter did so as well.

Jupiter looked at herself and then at Io. "Rise, my good servant. No—my good friend. You and the others have set me free. What is it that you wish?"

Sailor Europa replied, "For you to rule, my dear Queen."

"And what do you want me to do with those Scouts there?" Queen Jupiter raised her hand and pointed a finger and Sailor Moon and the other Sailor Scouts.

Sailor Ganymede answered, "Whatever you wish to do with them is your concern, not ours."

"They are of no threat to us. Come, let us go to my kingdom." Queen Jupiter raised her arms and disappeared in a whirl of wind of thunder. Ganymede, Io, Callisto, and Europa did the same.

"They're gone," said Sailor Pluto in awe.

The remaining Sailor Scouts slowly got up, sore and bleeding. Artemis and Luna appeared from the rafters. "Venus!" Artemis shouted. He ran to her and she picked him up. "I was so worried about you."

"I'm okay, Artemis. Don't worry about me." Sailor Venus winked at him.

"I'm terribly sorry we couldn't come down sooner. We did find out some useful things, though," Luna stated.

"Really? Like what?" asked Sailor Mars curiously.

"Well, first let's get you girls cleaned up. You look awful, no offense. Plus those wounds won't heal themselves. I know for a fact Serena's parents won't be home; they were going to a party and wouldn't be back until after midnight. That, and her brother is staying the night at a friend's house."

"Mmmmhm!" Sailor Moon pointed at her mouth, which still had ice over it.

"Oh, right. Do we really have to take that off?" Mars asked. Sailor Moon shot her a dirty look. "Fine." Mars raised her hand, and a puff of fire came out, melting the ice.

"Hey, you nearly scalded me!" Sailor Moon exclaimed, touching her face.

"Shush—I almost let you just stay quiet."

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Four shooting stars shot through the sky and landed on a building in Tokyo. It was hard to tell what building it was; it looked like some sort of radio station but it did not matter. What mattered was the fact that they were back on Earth. The Sailor Starlights and their Princess surveyed the area. "Can any of you tell exactly where we are? I am not exactly familiar with this area," Princess Kakyuu stated.

"Well, we were following Seiya here. I assume we're near Serena's house, correct?" Healer asked, turning her brunette head to Seiya.

"Yes, her house is actually about one block in that direction," Fighter pointed.

"Did you notice something going on with one of the planets we passed?" Healer asked.

Sailor Star Maker replied, "Do you mean that rather large one before we passed the asteroid belt?"

"Yes, I believe that one is the one called Jupiter. There seemed to be several streaks of light coming from the moons and even the planet itself," Kakyuu answered.

Fighter said, "I wonder what's going on. I bet Serena and her friends know though, especially Sailor Jupiter."

"Okay, then we had better go back to human forms," Sailor Star Healer suggested.

Kakyuu turned her head to the side. "But are you going to be in male form again? There is no necessity to change to males now."

Fighter replied, "It makes us seem…tougher, that's all."

"Honestly, I don't have a problem with it." Yaten changed her form, turning into an attractive silver-haired girl with shorts and a low-cut polo shirt.

"Nice." Taiki changed into something similar.

"Is that what they wear here?" Kakyuu asked. "I guess it would be a little ostentatious to wear this dress around, would it not?" She changed into a simple green dress with a thin gold rope belt. "This isn't too bad, is it?"

"No, Princess. You still look as radiant as ever," Taiki reassured her.

Seiya looked reluctant, but changed into female form as well, but wore a black leather jacket with jeans. Yaten raised her eyebrows, but said nothing. The others knew that Seiya still wanted to impress Serena in her male form, so even in a female form, she wanted to look boyish.

Kakyuu asked, "Ready?" Her Starlights nodded. "Let's go then."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

At the Tsukino residence, a piercing scream echoed through the house.

"OWWWWWW!" Serena shrieked. "THAT HURTS!"

Ami was cleaning the blonde girl's wounds. She looked at Serena and said, "If you stay still, it would not hurt so much." Serena pouted.

"And besides, some of us were injured a little more than you," Mina said. She had one long gash across her shoulder and one large bump on the back of her head.

All of the girls were in the living room on the couches, cleaning up from the night's wounds. The cats rushed around, trying to get medication and such to all the girls.

Serena looked down. "I'm sorry…I just wish I was stronger to protect you guys."

Luna came up to Serena with bandages in her mouth. She set them down in front in front of her and spoke. "They were quite strong. As I said before, you scouts need to be more prepared."

"Prepared for what? An overthrow of Serena's throne?" Raye inquired. "I don't think any of us were prepared for that."

Trista turned to the girl with dark purple hair on her right. "So this is what you meant by revolution, Hotaru."

Hotaru nodded. "I was unaware it would be this drastic, though."

Michelle said, "I felt several changes in Lita's attitude and felt maybe she was getting stronger, but did not realize it was because she was turning into a…Queen."

"As far as I'm concerned, my loyalty is still with Serena." Trista bowed her head in the young odango-headed girl's direction.

Serena blushed. "Thank you, Trista."

Artemis jumped in Mina's lap. "So what are we going to do next? We know Serena is next to inherit the throne. There is nothing that Jupiter and her moon scouts can do about that. There is no changing fate. But I do wonder—are they correct about the Moon Kingdom's past? Luna, do you know anything about what Ganymede was talking about? Is it possible that Jupiter was the ruler of this solar system?"

Luna sat in thought for a moment before she answered. "Serenity's father was a rare subject in the many discussions I had with her. However, she did describe him as a powerful man, with many mysterious facets about him. She mentioned things that her mother had told her, in the case that Serena ever needed to know these things as she became older. She never had time to tell you, sweetheart." Luna looked at Serena. Her eyes were slightly watered at the mention of her true mother. "From what I understand, there was a dispute in the Kingdom some years back. Queen Serenity's mother hinted that they had not always ruled the kingdom of the solar system, though they always ruled the moon of Earth. From what I can gather, Serena's grandfather, Tristan, went to the planet of Jupiter for an ambassador trip and came back as the undisputed ruler of this solar system. All of the planets were to report to him. Tristan alleged that the king of Jupiter at that time, Zeus, had grown too old and was retiring and had no heir to inherit the throne. It was told that Tristan was to be in charge. There were a few that didn't believe the new king's story, but somehow they managed to be silenced or mysteriously disappeared. Tristan himself ruled for nearly seven hundred years, and was a bit harsh at times. He was generally respected however, if not feared. The end of his reign came when he decided to be an adventurist, and travel where no other in our solar system had been before. He left, along with Serenity's husband, and never came back. Only Serenity's husband, Fiarin, returned. He reported that the king, being far from the moon's power for such a long time, had aged significantly. This had a similar effect on Fiarin, who died shortly thereafter from a weak heart. This was all before Serena herself was born, and this is the reason why she never knew her father."

Serena spoke up. "Well, that certainly explains a lot. How come you never mentioned this before, Luna?"

"Well, it never became a matter of importance. The thought of a lost mother certainly bothers you, so I saw no need to mention a father that you had no chance to miss. From early moments of my life when I knew Fiarin, he appeared to be a strong and brave soul. This trip with his father-in-law was to prove to him that he was worthy to be a king of the moon," Luna stated.

Artemis said, "I was never told too much about the history of the moon. I was focused mainly on the present. I heard similar rumors about the previous King, but anyone who spoke of King Tristan in such a manner while he was ruling was considered to be a traitor, and therefore, only underground could I hear of such stories."

"So, how did Jupiter become…Jupiter?" Serena asked.

"After King Tristan's death, a young warrior appeared to Serenity, claiming to be the next heir of Jupiter. She said nothing of the throne of the solar system, only of the throne of Jupiter. She also had every citizen of Jupiter on her side. Interested, Serenity allowed the girl to prove herself, and therefore be counted in the ranks of the Sailor Scouts. She excelled extremely well, proving stronger than most girls her age. Serenity determined she was the right Princess of Jupiter. Her name was Jovia, also known as Jovia the Giant. She was actually of a rather small stature, but was a very strong and powerful woman. Time passed, and she married a man from the moon of Io. They had a daughter, and that daughter is the scout you know today as Jupiter. That girl was Lita." Luna yawned as she finished her story.

"Do I really deserve to be ruler, then? Lita has as much right as I do," Serena stated.

Artemis replied, "I don't see it as a matter of bloodline. That is really an old-fashioned tradition and never really worked that well on Earth, if you look especially at Europe's past. It really depends on the strength and bravery of a person. You have proved yourself time and time again, Serena. You will have yet another time to prove you are the true ruler. We believe in you, if nothing else." Everyone else nodded.

Before Serena could say a word, the doorbell rang. "I'll get it," Raye said. She left the room and went to open the door. "You…you're…Serena?" called out Raye. "You're never going to believe who is here."

Raye walked into the room, followed by Kakyuu, Yaten, Taiki, and Seiya.


	9. Chapter 9 Arrival

Though the Starlights and their Princess were in human form, they were easily recognizable by everyone in the room. Serena dropped her jaw in surprise. It was one thing to see them all in female form, but it was another that they were actually there, in her house. "What are you doing here?" She rose up and went over to Seiya, as if in a dream.

"We came to beseech you for help," Kakyuu replied. "We are in need of a place to stay. Our home planet was completely destroyed and there is no other place for us in the universe."

Serena nodded. "So, you want permission to stay in this solar system, and to have a place to call your own?"

"That's right."

"I don't think that would be a problem."

"Now wait a minute." Amara finished wrapping up Michelle's arm and stood up. "Is there any reason for us to trust you?"

"Amara! These people were with me for far longer than most of the scouts. I trust them with my life. They protected me and fought with me," Serena said.

"It's okay. We understand her hesitation," Taiki replied.

"Are you going to be pop singers again?" asked Mina.

"No, I think we're going to do something different this time. Too much publicity for my liking," Yaten answered.

Seiya looked at Serena and the rest of the girls. "What happened to you all?"

Serena sighed. "We were attacked by the sailor scouts of the moons of Jupiter."

"That might explain why there were lights, then, as we passed by that giant of a planet."

Luna said, "Yes, perhaps they are celebrating the return of their Queen."

"Queen?" inquired Kakyuu.

"Sit down, and we'll talk this over. Would you like some tea?" offered Serena.

Kakyuu nodded and said, "That would be quite fine, my dear."

Serena turned to the Starlights. "And you?" They all nodded. "Then I will be back in a moment."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"We are so glad to have you back with us, Queen Jupiter." Io and his companions had traveled back to Jupiter, along with Jupiter herself. She wondered around in the gaseous world, gazing upon the landscape.

"Yes, Io, I am quite glad to be here. It has been quite a while since my return. Do you know where the kingdom specifically is?" The Queen turned to her silver-haired soldier.

Ganymede said to her, "I'm afraid most of the kingdom was destroyed by King Tristan of the Moon. The place where you stayed is not too far from here, though."

"Then let us go."

Europa inquired, "Queen, we know we are to refer to you as Your Highness and such, but what name do you go by?"

Jupiter turned to her. "On Earth, I was known as Lita. A short, dismal Earth name it is. Do you know my true name?"

"I don't believe it was ever known. You were always known as Sailor Jupiter before," Callisto answered.

"My formed incarnation doesn't seem to remember much of a name either. Lita is too short of a name though—it can be lengthened. Litana—that sounds better to me."

Callisto bowed her head. "You shall be known as Queen Litana then."

"And what of your names? Surely you have not just the names of the moons." The Queen looked expectantly at her scouts.

Europa said, "Actually, we do. It has also been quite a long time for us, and so we simply refer to each other as our planet names to avoid confusion, especially since there are so many of us."

"Just how many of you are there?"

"At least forty," replied Ganymede.

"Quite impressive."

"After we head to your kingdom, your Majesty, the other moon sailors would like to come and see you. They are celebrating as we speak, for they know what our return to this planet means," Io remarked.

Queen Litana turned to him. "Then we shall not keep them waiting long, shall we?"

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Serena's phone rang. "Excuse me. I'll get it." Serena sprang up and went to the kitchen to answer it.

Yaten turned to Luna. "So you are telling us that Sailor Jupiter is really a queen?"

Luna replied, "It would seem so, and certainly her faithful moon scouts believe it. We can't let them take Serena's throne away, though. She is the true heir, and certainly has the power to keep it. You saw her battle Galaxia yourselves. You know her strength."

"Aiee!" Serena shrieked.

"Serena?" asked Ami. "Are you all right?"

"Yep, it's Darien! He landed safely in America!"

"Her boyfriend went to America? Isn't that where he went before?" inquired Seiya.

"He tried, but as you well know, he was killed by Galaxia before ever making it there," answered Michelle.

Seiya nodded, but stayed silent. The obvious question, though, was answered by Ami. "He said he wanted to get back because he had missed so much already. It was really hard for him to go, but it did seem rather sudden."

The room was silent. Serena was heard saying, "Okay, then I'll talk to you tomorrow. Get some rest." She hung up the phone and went back into the living room.

"Did you inform him of the events that are taking place?" Luna asked.

"No, not really. He's super tired and just wanted to let me know he was safe and sound. I'll tell him later."

Artemis replied, "Well, considering you two are destined to rule in the future, you might want to inform him that his throne is at stake."

"Yeah, yeah I will." She flipped her hair and looked at Seiya. _I can't believe he's actually here…well, he's a she now, but still._ Seiya just kept staring at her. It made her a little uncomfortable. She remembered what she had said to Darien. _Yes, I'm still in love with you Seiya, but Darien is alive_. _He is the one I'm meant to be with._ Almost as if she knew what she was thinking, she broke the gaze between the two of them.

The others seemed to notice the two staring at each other and all were silent during this exchange of silence. Clearing her throat, Mina spoke up. "So, ah, what are we going to do? Lita is still our friend. We can't hurt her."

"No, but she is under the influence of power and might. She is stronger than she has ever been in her entire life. It may be difficult for her to give that up. There may be no going back," Artemis stated.

"Then we will have to destroy her kingdom," Amara said defiantly.

"Hey, no! Lita is still Lita. We don't even know their true intentions," Serena pointed out.

"Oh, but we do," replied Luna. "We know that they plan to put this entire solar system under Jupiter's rule, and to have her dominate this world as well. They don't want a merciful ruler, either. They want someone who will put people in their place and will have a much stricter discipline than say…Serena."

Serena raised her eyebrows but decided to say nothing. _I always thought it was a good thing to forgive. I can't some people can't forget the past though. That's why we're in this mess to begin with. I wonder why my mother never told me these things before. Did she think that this issue would not come up?_

Kakyuu's voice interrupted her thoughts. "We would be willing to help if necessary." Yaten, Taiki, and Seiya nodded. "Surely you are facing those who support this queen. You are fighting a revolution."

"Did anything of this sort happen to you, Princess Kakyuu?" Serena asked.

"Please, just Kakyuu is fine. And no, nothing really happened of this matter ever happened. The only war we fought was with Galaxia and her minions. She turned some of our people against us, but they normally went to other planets to destroy them. We lost so many…" Kakyuu's voice drifted off.

"But they were freed from Galaxia when Serena released their crystals with her light. Surely you would have run across them by now…?" Trista inquired.

Yaten shook her head. "We have heard from none. We searched for weeks, but I think they feared the results of their betrayal. We did find one, Taiki's cousin…" Yaten looked at Taiki, whose eyes had begun to water. "She had killed herself instead of facing us. We would have surely forgiven her, though—Taiki's life had been threatened and so she traded herself to Galaxia for her."

"Wow, I had no idea," Ami said.

Seiya stated, "There is much that you do not know of us. But I believe, thanks to Serena, that fact may change."

Luna nodded. "Well, then, we need to come up with a plan—before Jupiter and her scouts do. We don't need them invading Earth. With Jupiter's typhoon power, everything can be torn down and shot into oblivion. She is much stronger than you remember her, and will be quite a storm to deal with."

Artemis said, "I agree. However, since Jupiter's atmosphere is much different than what you are prepared to handle, not to mention a different gravity factor, it will be difficult to travel to Jupiter. Let Luna and I finish updating our technologies and find a way to get to Jupiter safely—before Jupiter comes here."

"Okay, then. We should be getting home. I think Serena's parents would be upset if they thought she was holding a party. How are you going to explain your scratches, Serena?" Hotaru asked.

"Ah, well, I'll just say I was being my klutzy self. They will surely believe that," Serena giggled.

Michelle looked to Kakyuu. "Where are you staying?"

Yaten said, "We still own our old apartment from our Three Lights days. The lease never expires, and we paid rent well in advance, so that it is always open for us. We never closed it when we left."

"Well, then, I believe that's settled. I'll contact you when Artemis and I are ready. Hurry home now, and be careful," Luna said.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Seiya lay in bed that night, wondering if Serena was thinking of her. It was so odd to be back on Earth, surrounded by so much life, when she herself had seen so much destruction in the far reaches of space. Serena's power did not extend to those worlds because she had only thought of Earth. Seiya could not blame her though; she did not know where exactly the other planets were. _One day, I'll bring her out there, especially to that beautiful nebula in the corner of the galaxy. What will happen to Kakyuu? She still deserves to be princess herself. What will Serena do? She is already fighting her friend to attain her own throne—why would she worry about Kakyuu?_ As Seiya fell asleep, she saw a small blonde with odango, flying with nothing but wings on, amid butterflies. She saw as the goddess rose and fell to the rhythm of her heart. Watching her be free was a wonderful thing. Then darkness came and surrounded her. She looked back to Seiya with fear, before falling into an abyss of turbulent, circular wind. Seiya cried out, "NOOOO!" But it was too late.

She sat up in her bed, sweating, and looked around. Everyone else was still asleep. The clock to her right said 2:58 A.M. She fell back into bed. Would it be too early to visit Serena? Probably—so she would wait until the morning to visit her. Seiya could not help but think the dream meant something, and that something was not good.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

What was left of a palace stood in front of Queen Litana and her scouts. The mark of Jupiter was carved into the marble at the very top. "Surely, at one point, this was a place of greatness," Queen Litana remarked. "We will make it great again!"

Io looked in awe at his queen. She was full of strength and might, and had a vision for the future. Surely her plans would not fail. Ganymede stepped towards her and bowed, "Your Majesty, if I may, this is the way to your throne." They walked through a long hall and passed one great room into a smaller room, with a emerald throne and pink lace across it. "Here we are."

Queen Litana stepped up to the platform where the throne was. She turned around and sat in her throne. Instantly, her four scouts kneeled before her. "Queen Litana! We swear our loyalty to you—to the very end!" Europa declared.

"You are my most faithful servants. You have set me free. For that, I can never thank you enough. You shall be honored before all others, and be my closest advisors. Rise, and take your command," their queen said emphatically.

They rose. Callisto said, "Your Majesty, Ganymede, Europa, and I would like to go to the other moons now and bring your other Jovians before you."

"Very well. Take your leave. I shall see you soon."

The trio bowed before her before exiting.

Io hesitated before speaking. "My Queen, if I may speak freely?"

"Yes, yes, of course."

"In the times past, you and I…well, we were close. I was your best advisor and helped you train to be Sailor Jupiter."

"Yes. I do remember that." The Queen nodded.

"You were in love with another. I never got the chance to tell you—I was in love with you. I looked eagerly to your arrival back at this planet. My Queen," Io said, kneeling before her, "I promise, I will always be faithful and true. I will always be in love with the most beautiful woman in the universe—you. It may be unrequited, as it was before, but I felt I had to be honest and straightforward. I want no secrets between us, at least on my part." He took her hand and kissed it.

_This man is in love with me? Such a strong man he is. What did I ever do to deserve someone so wonderful? I shall see how true he is, but I will definitely give him the chance he deserves._ "Io, I appreciate your honesty. Though I want not to choose favorites among my people, I believe you are a good man, a great Jovian, and one day I will need a king by my side. I will see in the coming days how faithful you really are, but let it be known that I am willing to trust you and be with you."

Io could hardly contain his excitement. "Yes, your Majesty. I understand. Thank you so much."

"Now, let us talk of the things to come—we need a good plan in order to create our perfect solar system. We need a way to disprove those who think I cannot rule. Those who stand in our way shall not survive."


	10. Chapter 10 Prophecy

It had been three days since the disappearance of Jupiter. The scouts were told to relax until that day when they were to battle their old friend. Artemis was having technical difficulties with the new equipment, and would not be ready for perhaps a few days more. Luna was anxious, and spent much time with Artemis, trying to speed up the process.

In the meantime, the girls had gone about their daily lives. School had started back and the Starlights and Kakyuu began attending the high school, without anyone recognizing them. A few of the other students had noticed Lita's absence. Even one of Lita's teachers came up to Serena, inquiring where her brunette friend had gone. Serena explained, "Well, she, uh, had family issues come up."

"I was unaware she had family. Aren't her parents dead?" asked the worried teacher.

"More distant relations. She just met family that she had met for cent—for a long time." Serena sighed. She had almost said centuries, which would have definitely made the teacher suspicious.

"Oh! Well, tell her we miss her."

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"Serena, why are you late again?" demanded Raye. "You know we were supposed to meet at four!"

"I had detention again! I can't help it that I was late. One of Lita's teachers accosted me in the hall, wondering where she was." Serena sighed as she dropped her books on the floor and sat down cross-legged in the fireplace room.

In the room were Ami, Mina, Hotaru, and of course, Raye. Hotaru had come over to hang out with the girls since Amara was working in the mechanic shop, with Michelle's help. Trista had said it was okay by her so long as Hotaru was home at a decent hour, which Hotaru responded to with, "I'm only slightly younger than everyone else. Do you have to treat me like a little child?"

Now Hotaru was smiling, glad she was able to hang out with "older" girls.

In a circle around the fire, the girls were settled and looking expectantly at Raye. "So, now that Serena's _finally_ here, we can get started. Are you ready?"

"Yes," chorused the other four.

"Okay. Hotaru, you can go first."

The purple-haired girl held out her left hand. "Is that the hand you write with?" Raye asked. Hotaru nodded. "Okay then." Raye took the young girl's hand and began to examine it. "Now, palm-reading is not an exact science, and I'm still learning. However, I do have the basics down. Let's see…ooh, I see a young, handsome man in your future. He's going to be a keeper…for a while. Won't be a forever thing. But you will definitely learn a lot from him. And you will be friends, always." Hotaru smiled. "You have a short line here, which represents your past life as very short. There are a few other lines next to it, and they get longer as you go along. This means with each reincarnation, you will live longer. Let's see…you want to be a nurse one day, right?" Hotaru nodded. "All right. Here's your intuition line…of course, we all know how intuitive you are. This one," Raye said, tracing along Hotaru's hand, "means you will take a long trip sometime in the future. It will be a nice trip, maybe a honeymoon, when you are married? I can't tell where—it's not that specific. But it will be nice."

Yūichirō stuck his head in through the door. "What would be nice if you came out here, Raye. Your grandfather is doing something weird outside."

"Now?!" Raye shouted. "Why can't you do anything about it? What is he doing exactly?"

"He's insisted on climbing trees and jumping to the next one…several feet away…and he's not landing in the trees. He insists that he's practicing to beat me the next time I wrestle him. I swear, next time I will let him win if he keeps this up. He won't listen to me, Raye."

She sighed. "Okay, then I'll go out there and calm him down." She followed Yūichirō through the door and into the courtyard.

The other four sat, waiting. "So, what's the latest with Luna and Artemis? How close are they to finishing?" asked Ami.

"Well, Artemis nearly electrocuted himself. He came home last night looking like he stuck his paw in a light socket. Poor kitty." Mina hugged her knees.

Serena said, "Luna is unsure. She really wants to see what Lita is up to. I hope Lita just remembers us, that's all. Luna is positive that Lita will want to take over the Earth with her power, and she may not be so forgiving to us. We just have to remember she is our friend, and no matter what, we will be there for her. If it costs me my crown, then so be it. But I am not hurting Lita!"

"But you may have to. In order to set things right before the end, you will have to do that which you dread and try to avoid—it may be unavoidable. Do not be afraid to face your fears," advised Hotaru.

Ami replied, "I always think it's amazing that someone your age says such wise things."

Hotaru sighed. "I am only a few years younger!"

Raye returned, panting and huffing. "For an old man, he sure is fast. I think he'll be okay now, though. He's so tired he's taking a nap." She sat down on the floor. "So, who's next?"

"Me!" called out Mina.

"Okay, then, let me see your hand."

Mina gave her right hand to Raye. "Ah, you desire fame and beauty—two very popular wishes. However , unlike most people, you have the ability to attain these things. But beware, fame and beauty do have their darksides. This line means that they will bring about trouble for you one day."

"Raye?" Yūichirō stuck his head in the room again.

"What?" Raye snapped.

"Telephone."

She sighed. "Excuse me. Again." She got up and left the room for a second time.

"Well, the beauty thing fits. I mean, you are the goddess of beauty and love," remarked Serena.

"Yep, that's true," replied Mina happily.

Hotaru sat quietly, and her eyes began to shade over. The other three looked at her. "Hotaru? Are you okay?" asked Serena.

Hotaru's eyes went totally black, and when she spoke, she spoke with a deep, distant voice. She spoke as if reciting an old poem:

"_In the darkness of the night, there will be a flash_

_And there will be thunder in the skies._

_Destruction will come about and begin to lash_

_At those who defy the evil secrets and lies._

_Lightning will strike the one who rules the land._

_She will have power like none other._

_True destiny will lie in her right hand,_

_And along with her ill-fated lover,_

_They will be an unstoppable hurricane._

_There will be much for them to rule,_

_And they will not be afraid to inflict pain;_

_But take a wise word as a useful tool—_

_One must love as never before,_

_And one must sacrifice her life_

_In order to make the familiar peace restore_

_What was left in the wake of strife."_

Hotaru's eyes flashed before returning to their normal purple shine. "What's wrong? Why are you all staring at me?"

Raye stood at the door, astounded. "I only caught part of that. What—what was that?"

"You tell me. I believe you would know a prophecy when you heard one," Hotaru replied.


	11. Chapter 11 Seduction

"She did what?" Luna looked at the group, clearly shocked.

"She spoke a prophecy. She told us of what was to come," said Ami.

"Well, it's a good thing I called Raye at the same time. We are just about finished and ready."

The girls, after first overcoming the shocking event of the spoken prophecy, had been told by Raye that they were to meet at Serena's. Luna and Artemis had been waiting for them in Serena's room, along with Trista, Michelle, and Amara, who had just come from her job. They were all sitting on Serena's bed and on the pillows on the floor.

Amara spoke up. "So, what exactly was this prophecy about? What's going to happen?"

"No chance you could repeat it, Hotaru, huh?" Mina asked.

Hotaru shook her head. "I don't really remember much of anything. I was in a trance. I only spoke what was flowing through me. It is difficult to explain."

Ami declared, "I can remember the meaning of it. It basically foretold of Jupiter's coming to power. It spoke of her lightning and hurricane—and some sort of lover. They were going to bring pain and suffering to their foes. Hotaru also said there was a particular way to defeat her—someone would have to love Lita and another, or maybe that same person, would have to die for her."

Silence befell the group. "I don't want anyone to die," cried Serena. "I want you all to stay here—why should anyone die in this senseless war? Why fight our friend? Why?"

"What if it's you who has to die, Serena?" asked Michelle.

"Michelle!" Even Amara was shocked at Michelle's question.

"Well, it is a possibility. Serena has the greatest love for any of us, despite the hard time we give her sometimes," the aqua-haired girl replied.

Luna said, "I don't want it to come to that. None of us can imagine the future without Serenity."

Everyone nodded. "So, what do you have planned for us, Luna?" Serena asked her feline guide.

Artemis replied, "We have these." He stepped aside from his spot, and on Serena's bed lay new watches. "These are tamper-proof, and won't broadcast our entire message when we speak. A little light will come on when we want to contact you. You can set it on alarm at night, in case you are sleeping and we need to contact you. I hope it won't come to that though."

Luna nodded, adding, "They also serve a double purpose. They will help as transporter keys, to travel further than the asteroid belt, which is further than most of you have been."

"Except the Outers," stated Trista.

"Yes, that is true. Now, we also have been looking at the skies. It seems there is definitely a lot of activity on Jupiter that scientists cannot seem to explain. They say that perhaps there is an earthquake or the start of another Red Spot. Only we know that Jupiter is preparing her powers."

"So when are we going?" asked Ami.

"Tomorrow, I would hope. Tomorrow is a Friday, so after school, you all should meet at the Outers' place." Luna answered.

Trista inquired, "What if she comes here first?"

Artemis said, "Then we will have home field advantage, although Jupiter is quite familiar with Tokyo, I'm afraid."

Serena hesitated, but decided to ask her question anyway. "Do you—do you think just us can handle this? Do we know how many are in Jupiter's group?"

Luna stated, "Yes, I'm sure you can handle this, but no, I do not know the number that is working for Jupiter."

"The planet of Jupiter has about forty moons or so, I believe," said Artemis.

"Forty?! And when were you planning to tell me this?" demanded Luna.

"Um, well, I tried to earlier, but you cut me off by telling me to hurry up," Artemis spoke defensively.

"It's okay. We can handle it," declared Amara.

"I hope so," said Luna.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

The past few days had been quite busy for Jupiter. Time passes differently on Jupiter; this is because a day on Jupiter is 9.9 Earth hours, and one year on the giant planet is 11.88 Earth years. Queen Litana found this was quite a bit to adjust to, having used the Earth calendar for so long. Io kept her on track, though he was kind enough to translate it to Earth terms for her. She found herself falling in love with the silver-haired gentleman. He was a man with a plan, and a man with a body. Litana wondered if it was obvious to the others that she was constantly checking him out, but the other scouts appeared not to notice, or were respectful enough to say nothing.

Meeting the other moon scouts had been quite interesting. There were so many—surely her power would not be matched, even by Sailor Moon herself.

Queen Litana lay in her bed, thinking of these things and of how she would soon begin her reign after the coronation during the next few Jupiter days. She heard a knock at her bedroom door. _Who would come at this time? Surely they know I sleep._ She opened it to find Io standing there. "Oh, hello, Io. What do you need?"

"I just wanted to make sure you were comfortable, my Queen. I did not realize you were sleeping."

"Oh no, it is quite all right. You can come in."

He entered, running his eyes over Litana. She was dressed in a slim silk gown that showed her cleavage a bit. Litana found it comfortable to sleep in, though she realized it was having an effect on Io. She smirked. _Maybe I can have fun with this._ She turned and sat on her bed, her arms folded at the right angle so that her front would not go unnoticed. Then she began conversating with him, waiting for the right moment. "So, I wanted to tell you thank you for all you have done. You and the other scouts have made me proud."

Io cleared his throat, trying to stare into his Queen's eyes, but his own eyes kept traveling down. Litana had to hold back a laugh. It was quite amusing to watch such a strong man become weak-willed when he was in her presence. "I appreciate…that." His eyes looked back into hers. "I...I am always there for you, Queen Litana."

"Please. You know you are allowed to call me Litana in private presence."

"Yes, but I think of you as my queen first."

"You don't have to, you know."

He cleared his throat again. "I...I don't?"

"No," she said softly, gazing directly into his eyes. All at once, he came up to her and knelt before her.

"My queen, you are—"

"Shut up and kiss me." She raised him from his knees and had him sit beside her. They intertwined their fingers together and came close together. Litana smiled, knowing full well she was in control of him. She leaned forward and contacted her lips with his. They kissed for several full minutes before coming deeper to each other. Io took his hand and ran it through her hair. They broke their kiss.

Io gasped for air. "I had no idea…"

"Sure you did," replied Litana silkily. He pulled her in and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her with every passion in his heart. "Oh no you don't," she said, smirking. She turned him around and pushed him onto her red silk sheets. "You can't have all the fun." She lay on top of him, kissing him sweetly.

The curtains fell from the four-poster bed, so that the lovers were enveloped in darkness and each other.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Seiya had not spoken to Serena about her dream, always forgetting that dismal though when she saw Serena's face. It was nice to have a normal life, or as normal as it would be. Certainly, life had been different on her old planet, but since Galaxia, things were never the same.

Walking to Serena's house, Seiya intended to be fully honest with her. They had not been alone since Seiya's return, and it made it difficult for Seiya to confide in Serena. Arriving at her destination, Seiya raised her hand and knocked on the door.

The blonde beauty that Seiya had come to see opened it. "Oh Seiya! It's good to see you!"

"Yes, and you too, dumpling," Seiya said affectionately.

"Well, don't just stand there. Come in!" She opened the door for Seiya.

They went to Serena's room. Luna perked her head up. "Oh, hi Seiya." Glancing at Serena, Luna said, "I'll leave you two alone. I wanted to do some more research on Jupiter, anyway. Is your laptop in the living room, Serena?"

"Yes, but Mother may think it's strange that a cat can operate a computer perfectly."

Luna sniffed the air. "I believe she is cooking. She will not notice much. I'll be careful," she said, winking at Serena. She walked out of the room, leaving the two friends alone.

"Ooh, I hope Mother finishes cooking soon. I'm starving." Serena sighed as she plopped down onto her bed. Seiya smiled and sat next to her. "You can stay for dinner, if you want," Serena suggested.

"I would love to."

_Now the formalities are out of the way. What should I say to her?_ Serena thought. _ Awkward!_

"I need to talk to you about something," Seiya said.

"Ok, me too."

"Well, then, you go first."

"No, you."

"Dumpling…fine." Seiya took a breath. "I've been having nightmares about you."

"Funny, me too. Only you're not the cause of mine."

"And neither are you," Seiya replied.

Serena asked, "What's yours about?"

"It starts off like a beautiful dream, but then some sort of darkness covers you, and I can't do anything about it."

This startled Serena. It sounded like Hotaru's prophecy would come true with her. "Well, um, I don't remember mine at all. I'm told that I shout in my sleep for my friends, remembering that last battle with Galaxia. One of those people I call for is you, Seiya."

Seiya blushed. "Really?"

"Well, you were there for me. Don't act like you don't expect me to remember you." Serena touched Seiya's hand. Every blood vessel in Seiya surged at the electric touch. She willed herself to stay still and be in control. Serena did not notice, for she was gazing into Seiya's eyes. "I appreciate you, Seiya."

Seiya sighed. "I just…it's been hard, Serena. I know you are meant to be with Darien, but sometimes I can't help but wonder—"

Serena stopped her. "Please don't. It's hard for me too."

"What if I was a guy again?"

"Wouldn't change my feelings."

Seiya said, "I just can't win, can I?" The disappointed black-haired girl looked away from Serena. "Well, are you doing anything tomorrow? Just for old times' sake."

"Actually, the scouts and I are planning to face Queen Jupiter."

"You actually refer to her as Queen?" Seiya wondered.

"Well, it seems right. I would hate to take something that's not mine. But, it seems I may have no choice." Serena explained about Hotaru's prophecy and Ami's translation.

Seiya sat in shock. "Oh, Serena, I don't want anything to happen to you. Not after all we've been through—you can't…How many sailors are under Jupiter's command?"

"Artemis estimates about forty."

Seiya's jaw dropped. "Seriously? And you guys are going all by yourselves? No way. I'm coming too."

"It's not your fight."

"I don't care. I feel obligated to you, Serena. You are just as important to me as my real Princess. I'm coming," Seiya insisted.

"Well, all right. Do you think the others--?"

"I don't know, but I will find out, dumpling."

"Serena! Dinner!" Serena's mother called from the downstairs kitchen.

"Come on, let's go eat," said Serena as she headed for the stairs.

"Wait." Seiya touched Serena's shoulder. She turned around. Before she could stop her, Seiya had kissed her. "Couldn't resist." Serena couldn't resist either. She made no move to push Seiya away, or to reprimand her. She felt weak and under Seiya's spell. Had Seiya realized this, she could have had her way with Serena. Seiya, however, just smiled and went ahead to dinner. Serena touched her lips. _What have I done?_


	12. Chapter 12 Suspicious Circumstances

Laying side by side, Io and Litana held each other close. Io could not believe he had been with this goddess the entire night. She had been full of passion, a whirlwind in his mind. He wondered, though, what time it was. Judging by the amount of light through the door, it was almost time for the ceremony. "We will have to get up soon," remarked Io.

"Ah, but I wish we didn't," remarked Litana. She sighed in bliss.

"One day we won't have to."

Litana chuckled. "You're a cute one." She rolled over and sighed. "So today is a celebration—a ballroom dance—all in honor of me?"

"That's right, my love."

"Are you going to dance with me?"

"Yes. Though I should warn you—the music is probably not what you are used to."

"Oh, that's all right. I adapt easily."

"Yes," Io said, devouring her mouth. "I know that."

Litana giggled and kissed him back.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Luna muttered to herself, "Damn computer." She had been trying to get ahold of Darien, but it went rather slowly right after she emailed him and Serena's mother came into the living room. Luna had distanced herself as far away as she could from the laptop, so she had no idea if he got her message. She had warned him of Serena's danger, and begged him to find a way home. "Serena needs you. I can only stand by and advise. You inspire her love. There is always the danger of her not making it out alive. We can't have that happen," Luna had written. She hoped he would get her message._ Maybe he should get a communicator too, _she thought. She saw Seiya and Serena come down the stairs. Noticing the queer look on Serena's face, Luna looked worried. What had happened while she was gone?

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Europa, Callisto, and several of the other moon scouts were busy redecorating the hall. With supplies and materials they had gathered (or stolen, whatever definition you prefer) from Earth, the grand hall looked almost as good as the old glory days, with the exception of the mission roof.

Ganymede entered the hall and looked around. "Very nice, everyone. I'm sure Queen Litana will be quite pleased. I didn't realize you had so many things."

"Well, we did make a quick trip back to Earth," said Callisto. "Nobody noticed us at all."

"Yes, it was like we weren't even there. Of course, Adrastea here was quite a help, with her ability to turn invisible," Europa remarked.

A short girl with silver hair in a braid and dressed in a silver sailor suit bowed. "It was all for the queen. She deserves to have the best possible."

"Good answer. I'm sure she will be especially pleased. I would not be surprised if she borrowed your talents for spying and such things. Your gift is a remarkable one. That is not to say that all of you are not talented; we all have our uses. Just remember our goal, and surely we will achieve it," spoke Ganymede.

The other scouts nodded in agreement. An older male scout with brown hair dressed in a tuxedo with a jade-green shirt underneath, said, "When will the queen be out?"

"Io is supposed inform her when the festivities begin, Thermisto. I haven't seen him in a day or so…I'm sure he is making his own preparations for the ceremony," Ganymede answered.

"Is he going to propose to the queen?" asked Callisto.

"Well, it is a bit soon to think about that. I know that in this past week, though, that they have been bonding. Perhaps…but let's not get our hopes up. Io is a good scout, and has the ability to be as good of a leader as Jupiter herself."

A red-haired girl with a gray sailor suit and pink bow spoke up. "I hope so. We all like Io and think he's quite capable of handling things. That is definitely one guy we can depend on." The other scouts nodded in agreement.

Ganymede said, "Elara, you are absolutely right. He is definitely capable…if nothing else…" His voice trailed off. "Well, get back to decorating and preparing. Are we going to do anything about this roof?"

"It's quite romantic to see the sky," answered Europa.

"But we need a roof. See if you can make one more run to Earth. Supplies are much more abundant there, and nobody will notice if a few pieces are. When we get our own welding equipment, we can begin to make these sorts of things again. Right now, however, we are just going to have to…borrow…these things." Ganymede looked at silver-haired girl. "Come, Adrastea. You and a few of the others are coming with me."

"Do you know where to even go?" asked Callisto.

"No, and that's why you're coming with me too. One more run to Earth and back; then we will be ready. I also need to have another certain blonde-haired brat taken care of and out of the way…we don't need her to ruin our little party."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"You did WHAT?" questioned Luna. She and Serena were in Serena's room. Seiya had left after a very pleasant, but awkward, dinner. Serena did not know how to act around her since the kiss. Were things different? So she confided in her feline companion. She did not expect the lecture though; she was hoping more or less for sympathy.

"I didn't do it—she started it," stated Serena stubbornly.

"Bu t you didn't stop her."

"It's a little difficult. Have you ever kissed anyone?"

Luna was taken aback by the question. "Me? Kiss…anyone? Well, I …um…"

Serena giggled. "Come on Luna. Didn't you kiss that astronaut guy that you fell in love with around a few Christmases ago?"

"Yes, him. Yes." The cat sighed. "Okay, maybe you have a point. Love is a hard thing to control. But you are expected to be in control, Serena. You are going to be a queen one day, despite what the scouts of Jupiter believe. You have to prove to them that you deserve it. You've already proven it to us. They just need confirmation."

"What about Hotaru's prediction? Will I really die?" Serena asked.

"Well, you always manage to come back, sweetie. You've died several times, and yet, here you are, alive and well, sitting on your bed."

"I suppose…" The blonde girl moaned and fell back onto her bed. "I just don't know what to do, Luna. Lita has been such a good friend. I could always count on her to watch my back when we were battling demons and monsters. She truly is powerful."

"Don't let your heart rule your intentions. Think about what you need to do."

"I'm so afraid of losing the ones I love. Ever since Galaxia…" Serena's eyes watered. "I just don't want anyone to die. I…I want them all to live. No matter what."

Luna said, "Sometimes, you just can't save everyone." She nuzzled Serena's arm.

"I'm so glad you're here, Luna. What would I do without you?" Serena picked up Luna and held her close. It was times like this that Luna wondered if Serena knew her true age. Luna felt like a little kitten, not a full-grown cat that was hundreds of years old. "I just need to be stronger."

"Then toughen up a bit. Don't let things get to you. If something doesn't go your way, don't cry about it—_do_ something about it. You can change the environment around you. You always can make people feel better. Now is the time for you to make yourself feel better. Try to think of something happy whenever things are tough."

"I do that, Luna, but sometimes, it's just not enough."

"Think of Darien. Don't you want to be strong for him?" asked Luna.

"Yes…I suppose so. I miss him so much."

Luna was about to mention her email when the telephone rang. "I'll go get it." She jumped up and ran to the telephone in the hall. "Hello? Hey, Ami. Of course you can come walk me to school. What do you mean you don't want me to be late? I haven't been late…much…just once today…Okay…"

Serena continued to talk with her blue-haired friend while Luna sat on the bed thinking. The cat walked to the window and gazed at the moon, watching the skies for anything unusual. _Poor Serena_, she thought. _These are difficult things to deal with all at once. I know, though, that even if anything happens to her, it won't be because of a failure on her part. I wonder what Jupiter is planning to do?_

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

The next day at school passed without incident; Serena even managed to escape tardiness, though Raye had to distract one of the teachers in order for Serena to enter unnoticed past the bell. During lunch when she was outside, Luna came up to her and hissed, "Hey, I need to talk to you. Alone."

"Okay," Serena said nonchalantly.

They walked over to a group of trees. Serena sat on the ground with her back to the school so people wouldn't see her talking to her cat. "What's up, Luna?"

"I saw some strange lights coming from the sky and going into town, near that high rise where the Jovian scouts were stationed."

Serena gasped. "They're already here? Why can't they wait until school is over?"

Luna looked at her, surprised. "Really, and I thought you would have wanted to miss class."

"I'm trying to care, Luna. I thought about what you said and I'm trying," Serena stated.

"Well, color me impressed. I do think you are going to have to cut your lunch hour short, at least. We need to find out if it's them or not," Luna declared.

"And if it is…?"

"Try and stop them before they cause any damage and get the other scouts out there."

"I can't believe it. What if I'm late to class?"

"Blame it on your cat." Luna winked. "Let's go."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"So, how's this supposed to work?" Thermisto asked brushing his brown hair out of his face.

"Simple. Io and I did it the same way last time—create a distraction. Adrastea is my pawn in this game. We have to make the first move. Do something that will get that moon brat to surrender herself. We made enough streaks in the sky to let them know we are here. She will come soon," Ganymede replied. Thermisto, you are my rook. You are to come when Adrastea creates an opening for you, and disappear. No one will remember you—until you appear from nowhere and attack Sailor Moon. I'm sure she will show up. She didn't last time, perhaps because Io and I left before she had a chance to arrive. Don't make a move until she shows up and we've got her alone."

Adrastea asked snappily, "And then what?"

"Checkmate."

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Serena and Luna arrived in the center of town. "I know the lights landed somewhere around here," stated Luna. "See, there is the abandoned high rise building."

"I don't see anything," Serena said. She yawned and stretched her arms. "I'm ready for a nap."

"Serena! This is no time for a nap. We need to find out if that was Jupiter's scouts."

They both heard a crash to their right. "Somebody! Help! Call the police! My child has disappeared!" A woman ran into the middle of the street, crying hysterically.

Serena pulled the distraught woman out of the road right before a car could hit her. "Ma'am, what happened?"

"I'm not sure. One minute, little Johnny was right there, an d the next, it was like he disappeared in front of my eyes!" The woman began crying.

"Do you think…?" Serena muttered to Luna.

Suddenly, a silver-haired sailor scout appeared on top of the building in front of Serena. "Hello, down there!" Beside her was a scared little blonde boy.

"Johnny!" his mother screamed.

"The only way this boy will be released is if Sailor Moon appears!" the silver-haired girl yelled.

"I believe, then, that's our cue," hissed Luna to Serena. "Go on, go transform. Quickly!" Serena nodded and ran off into a clothing store.

"Who do you think you are?" demanded a tall red-faced man.

The silver-haired girl smiled. "I don't believe that's any of your business."

"Well, it certainly is mine! Trust me, you don't want my husband down here. He can be a very angry man," said Johnny's mother.

"You must be the mother. Well, well…don't worry, you'll have your son back soon enough. I just need to talk to your little local heroine."

The woman asked, "Why, what has she done to you?"

"She's in my way, or should I say, my queen's way," the silver-haired girl replied.

"And I will continue to do so if you keep this up!" yelled a familiar voice. The spectators and the mother turned around to see Eternal Sailor Moon posing defiantly. "I can't stand by while you separate a boy from his mother! That's just wrong! In the name of the moon, I shall punish you!"

"Well, well, well. Look who's decided to show up. You came at a good time. Another few minutes, and this boy would have had a very bad 'accident.' Are you going to surrender to us in order for this boy to be set free?" questioned the silver-haired girl.

Serena furrowed her brow. "I don't even know who you are!"

"Oh, look at my manners. I am Sailor Adrastea, moon scout of Jupiter!"

"Another one of Jupiter's moon scouts…I wonder what her powers are," murmured Luna.

"In any case, I still require an answer of you, Sailor Moon. Will you exchange places with this boy, or will you continue to be selfish?" Adrastea asked.

Johnny's mother looked pleadingly at Sailor Moon. "You are so powerful, surely you can defeat her. Get my boy back please!"

Sailor Moon saw the desperate look in her eyes. Moved by pity, she answered Adrastea, "Yes, just bring him safely here!"

"Okay then." Adrastea and Johnny disappeared from the roof.

"Where did she go?" asked Luna.

Suddenly Adrastea and Johnny reappeared a few feet in front of Sailor Moon. "So easily predicted. It's so perfect that you came alone. It makes our work so much easier."

Sailor Moon felt a blow to the back of her head and blacked out.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Whoa, whoa, Luna, slow down. Tell us slowly what happened," said Artemis.

The scouts and the Starlights were all standing several feet outside the school. The principal's son had been kidnapped, and with nobody to watch the school, classes were canceled.

"Serena's been kidnapped herself. Your principal's son that was kidnapped? That was the little boy named Johnny that she was trying to save. She agreed to switch places with him, which is exactly what the Jovian scouts wanted."

"So who was there? Ganymede? Io?" asked Ami.

"Actually, they were different scouts. There was one called Adrastea, who has the ability to turn invisible."

"Oh great," Artemis groaned.

"And there was another who I did not recognize. He had been standing off to the side until Adrastea approached Sailor Moon. Then he came up behind her and hit her on the back of the head. They all disappeared back into the sky," Luna said.

"Wow. So now we definitely have to go to Jupiter," Raye supposed.

"Yes, that's correct."

Kakyuu spoke up. "We have agreed to go with you. If Sailor Moon's in danger, it means danger for all of us. We cannot stand by and watch her get hurt. Also, since she has agreed to allow us a place of our own to rule one day and she has saved our lives before, then we certainly need to help her."

Luna nodded. "Well, there's one more I'd like to get in contact with. Ami, can you help me find a nearby computer? I need to check some messages."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Serena woke up, still in her sailor suit. Wherever she was, it was dark and rather cold. _Strange, this is. I wonder where the heck I am, _she wondered.

Before she could get up and explore the room, a door above her head opened. Ganymede stood triumphantly over her. "Well, hello there, Miss Moon. Looks like you're awake. Don't worry, we won't hurt your friends or anything. You did agree to put yourself here in the first place."

"Not _here_, specifically. Where is _here_, anyway?" Sailor Moon demanded.

"Why, you're on Jupiter, of course."

_Jupiter? Wow, I wonder how long I've been out. Will the other scouts come for me? Do they know? Of course they know; Luna saw everything happening. She's probably got them all coming._ Serena smiled at this last thought.

Ganymede frowned. "What's the grin about?"

"Oh, nothing. Just thinking about how much you're going to regret doing this." She suddenly stood up and pointed her magic moon stick. "Starlight Crystal Blast!" A large blast of light erupted from her rod and came towards Ganymede. He jumped away from the door opening, allowing the light to keep going. It hit the newly-patched roof, causing part of it to fall and cover the opening to Sailor Moon's dungeon.

"Well, I believe you've done yourself in for now. I need to make sure you don't try anything like that again, though. Thermisto!" Ganymede called.

"Yes, sir," Thermisto answered.

"Can you go through the floor and make sure Moon-face won't try anything stupid?"

"Yes, sir. Anything else?"

Ganymede smirked. "Well, you can have a little fun with her. Have it your way. Doesn't much matter to me. Just keep it down so it won't interrupt the party."

"Of course." Thermisto smiled and morphed through the floor.


	13. Chapter 13 Taking Advantage

_I am concerned about Serena's condition. Please let her know that I miss her terribly. If there is anything I can do to help with Jupiter's rebellion, let me know. She is not going to rule in the future; we have seen the future and know what it brings._

_Again, pass my love to Serena. Should she encounter any trouble, contact me immediately. I will see what I can do. It is rather difficult, being overseas and all. But I will do anything for my princess._

_Sincerely, Darien Shields_

"Well, I suppose I will have to let you know," Luna remarked after reading Darien's email. She and Ami sat in the corner of an unused classroom, while the rest of their group waited by the door, rather anxious to leave.

"Do you think he will get the message in time? What can he do, being all the way in America?" Ami inquired.

Luna turned to Ami. "It is a mistake to believe that Darien is weak. He has power that has not awakened itself fully. Since Eternal Sailor Moon has appeared, he has been evolving towards a change of his own, one more powerful than the Tuxedo Mask that we know now. All he needs is something that will bring forth the power within him."

"But how could he try and get here, or even to Jupiter, to rescue Serena?"

Luna answered, "Well, I sent him a communicator, although the mail system is not the speediest thing on this planet, especially when it is to travel overseas. He should receive it soon, though. If he can connect to our power, he can transport with us to Jupiter. I'm not sure that we can wait for him, though. We need to get to Serena as soon as possible. She's a strong scout, but outnumbered, she may not be able to overpower them by herself. I don't know what kind of situation she is in, either. They could do anything to her, and we don't know. I just don't know…" Luna's voice choked.

"Well, let's send him a message back. I wish we could call him, but only Serena has his number," Ami said.

"I just hope he gets it in time," Luna prayed.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Hello there, pretty girl." A brunette Jovian scout stood in front of his blonde prison. "So they call you Sailor Moon, huh? Well, I suppose I should introduce myself. I am Thermisto. Remember that name—you might be screaming it later."

Sailor Moon raised her wand at him. "Don't you dare come near me," she threatened.

"Oh, now, you don't want to have a little fun?" taunted Thermisto.

"I mean it. I don't want to hurt you, but I will."

"Oh, you will? Really? Because if you were going to, you would have already. You're hesitating. Go ahead. Try."

"Very well then. Starlight Crystal Blast!" Her shining blast of light went right through Thermisto.

He kept standing there, laughing. "You can't hurt me anyway. I have an abililty to allow object to pass through me. It can be quite handy at times."

Sailor Moon stared at him in disbelief. She looked at her wand and with determination, raised it again. "Starlight Crystal Blast!"

Again, her attack was of no use. "I told you—you can't hurt me." He walked slowly towards her. "But I can hurt you."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Okay, ready everyone?" Luna asked. The transformed scouts stood with Luna and Artemis in a field with many trees.

Hotaru asked, "How are you going to get to Jupiter?"

"Well, if two of you would be so kind as to carry Artemis and me, I'm sure we'll manage just fine."

"Wait, how long will it take us to get there?" wondered Mina.

Kakyuu answered, "Well, traveling through space is a tricky thing. It took us at least an Earth day to get to where we live. Surely Jupiter will not take so long—an hour, maybe? Probably less."

"I just hope we can get there in time," Seiya said worriedly.

"We will; don't worry," Artemis reassured her.

Amara asked, "Are we ready now?"

Mina picked up Artemis and Yaten picked up Luna. They all nodded. "Just remember our mission," Luna said. "Go!"

"Sailor Teleport!"

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

"My Queen, how good is it to see you!" exclaimed Callisto as Litana stepped out of her royal room. "We have arranged the main room for you. I'm sure you will enjoy the ceremony."

"Thank you, Callisto. I will be there in a minute."

"An Earth minute?"

"What?"

"Or a Jovian minute?" Callisto queried.

"Doesn't matter."

"Sorry, I know the time change is confusing. We will wait for you, Your Majesty." With that, Callisto skipped off down the hallway.

Io exited the royal room. "My Queen, may I?" He extended his arm to the brunette goddess. "You look lovely." And lovely indeed Litana was. Her hair was braided with hold lace. Her beautiful crown rested upon her head, and her dress was a deep green with wavy layers. It sparkled with red glitter around her waist, and it was cut modestly where some cleavage was peeking out. She wore white gloves with gold lace around the edge of them. "Wherever did you find that dress? Was it already in the royal dresser?"

"Yes, it was. There is quite a wardrobe in there. I had no idea Jupiter was so lavish, even in my former time here."

"It was once a great kingdom, my lady."

"It will be again, I promise." Litana took Io's arm. "Let us meet our public." They walked down the hallway together towards the throne room.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Sailor Moon struggled and fought, but the chains around her wrists would not budge nor break. "Now, Miss Moon, it is time to have a little fun." He pressed up against her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"You let go of me! I've got a boyfriend, you know!" Sailor Moon shouted angrily.

"No, I didn't know. But it looks like he hasn't used you much. Shame for all this beauty to go to waste."

"No! Stop!" Thermisto didn't stop. He pushed her against the wall and began kissing her roughly. "Help! Help! Let go!" She fought as hard as she could as he ran his hands over her, but she couldn't get away. "Stop! Stop! Endymion…" Her odango ornaments began releasing a high pitch as she began crying.

"Damnit." Thermisto covered his ears. "What is that thing?" He noticed the red glow in his prisoner's hair. "Ah, that's it." He yanked the odango ornaments off and threw them aside. The dungeon became silent again. "Now…" He resumed kissing her. No matter how much she struggled, Thermisto had a firm grip of her. "Stop resisting me. This doesn't have to hurt," he muttered. He began to try to lift up her sailor skirt.

_I'm never going to get away. He's going to... _Sailor Moon didn't even want to think about what was happening to her.

Suddenly, a door opened from several feet away. Due to the darkness, neither Sailor Moon nor Thermisto could identify the figure right away. "Let go of her," a stern voice spoke out of the shadows. "Let go of my fiancée."

........................

**Author's note: May I just say that I still feel odd referring to Seiya as a girl? In any case, hope you're enjoying the story.**


	14. Chapter 14 Double Cross

"And who are you?" asked Thermisto, pausing from frisking his prisoner. No response came. "Who are you?" he demanded angrily.

The stranger stepped forward. "It matters not who I am. What matters is that you have your hands somewhere where they shouldn't be." He raised his staff forward and charged towards Thermisto. Though he pushed off from Sailor Moon, Thermisto was unable to avoid the attack since he was caught off-guard and was stuck in the shoulder. He kneeled down and looked up, preparing for another strike.

_Now's my chance_, Sailor Moon thought. She began to try to slip out of her chains while Thermisto was distracted. _Is that really Tuxedo Mask? How did he get here? Was it my…call for him? I was wishing for him with all my might. Surely…surely it brought him here._

"Well, you're certainly not one of us, Tuxedo Man. Come on, I'm ready for you now!" exclaimed Thermisto.

The masked man turned his head to the side. "Are you sure?"

"Come on already, you damn coward!"

Smirking, Thermisto's assailant rushed forward, only to have his staff run through Thermisto. "See? I'm ready. You can't touch me now!" With that, Thermisto passed through his attacker, then struck him from behind. The masked man bent down on one knee. "So, are you going to tell me who you are? Or am I going to have to kick your ass?"

"You know who I am," responded the masked man quietly.

"Nope, don't know many masked cowards."

"Darien!" The masked man turned around at the sound of his name. "Don't let him get to you!" commanded Sailor Moon.

"Darien? Then you are…? Ah, so that's it. You are the former king of this little solar system." Thermisto wrapped his arms around Tuxedo Mask in a chokehold. "Well, goodbye, Your Majesty."

Tuxedo Mask gasped for air. "Darien!" Sailor Moon screamed. "Don't give up! For us! For everyone!" Inspired by her words, he appeared to concentrate. As he did, a change came about—his tuxedo outfit transformed into shining black armor. He held his staff up, and it changed into a long, jeweled gold sword. It shimmered in the darkness of the dungeon.

"What the…?" Thermisto saw the change come about and was confused, but kept his hold on Darien. However, with one swift movement, Darien came about and slashed Thermisto. A large gash on his arm began bleeding profusely. "Damnit!" He howled and grimaced in pain.

"I hate to do this, but you leave me little choice." Darien raised his sword.

"Tuxedo Mask! You are not a killer," pleaded Sailor Moon. She finally slipped out of the cuffs. She rushed up to him. "Don't kill him."

"Tuxedo Mask is no more. I am Prince Darien, your faithful servant."

"Faithful you are—please do as I ask."

"How would we keep him from attacking us?"

"Trust me, I'll leave you alone," Thermisto replied through gritted teeth. "This is the first time I've ever been scratched. Boy, it really hurts."

"Then I tell you this. Should I see you again, I will kill you. Understand?" spoke Prince Darien. Thermisto nodded.

_Darien's so scary. Why is he like this? He is always willing to give people chances. What is this strange change? What's wrong with him?_ Thoughts raced through Sailor Moon's mind.

Darien grabbed her hand and began to pull her towards the open door. "Come on, let's go. We need to get to Jupiter."

"Um, we are on Jupiter."

"Queen Jupiter."

"Wait!" Sailor Moon went back to where she was being held and took up her moon stick. "Okay, now let's go."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

"My Queen, it is good to see you. Enjoying your stay?" asked Ganymede.

Sitting in her royal throne, Jupiter nodded. "Yes, it is splendid. You and the others certainly put quite a bit of work into fixing up this room. It is very wonderful."

"That's not all, my lady." Ganymede gestured towards a group of assembled scouts with instruments in their hands. "The Jovian Ensemble would like to play a piece in your honor." He waved his hand to them. The group held a strange assortment of instruments, none that were seen on the planet Earth, anyway. They were jeweled, ancient instruments from another time, a time long past. However, the scouts had discovered them and began practicing, remembering how they were once played. As they began playing, an eerie feeling overtook the room, and all was silent, except for the music. It is difficult to describe music in words, but if one were to do so, one would say that the music brought back ghosts from the years past. As the ghosts came back, so did the jolly melodies of the olden days. The music livened up the room, filling everyone with effervescent emotions. Couples began to pair up and dance around in circular motions. The music then included a second melody, one that spoke of love and truth, peace and harmony. It was a grand symphony of blended sounds. The melody whistled throughout the room.

Ganymede spoke again. "If I may, my Lady?" He offered his hand to his Queen.

"Of course." She took his hand and together they went to dance. Io stood by, mesmerized by the movement of Queen Litana.

"Io!" Europa called. She came over to where he was standing. "Hello? Are you awake?"

"Yes, I'm sorry." He shook his head.

Europa smirked. "You love her, don't you?"

"What concern is it of yours?"

"Well, I'd like to know if you will be King Jupiter one day."

"We are in love, yes. Time will tell how long this will last. I truly adore that woman."

"Just like the old times, yes?"

"Almost. She was in love with a man from Earth then. Now he is gone, for his revival was a failure. He was turned to the Negaverse."

Europa shuddered. "Don't mention those horrible people from that world. I still remember the pure darkness of their reign."

"Many of us do. I'm glad Sailor Moon managed to be rid of her and avenged her old kingdom. However, this time, it is our kingdom. We really ought to be the ruling planet. It is Jupiter's right."

"Ah, there is none more patriotic than you, dear Io."

Io turned towards Europa. "Would you like to dance?"

"Well, I suppose." Arm in arm, they went to the center of the room to join the rest of the dancers.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Landing on the surface on Jupiter, the scouts looked around. "Are we in the right place?" asked Sailor Mars.

"Well, we're on the right planet. This is also the area where the Starlights said they had seen the lights go towards. If I remember correctly, there is, or was, a grand building, taller than most of the temples on the other planets," Luna remarked. "It may have been destroyed in the Negaverse attack years ago."

"Look! Through the mists!" Sailor Saturn pointed towards a tall, dark image. The scouts walked in its direction. As they came closer, the image turned into the tall building Luna had spoken of.

"This has to be it," Artemis said. "Where can we go in and not be recognized?"

"Good question. It sounds like they're having a celebration. Perhaps they are all too distracted to wander the halls," commented Sailor Neptune.

Luna nodded. "That may be true. I think we should go in two groups. That way, if one is caught, the other will still be free. The Jovian scouts that we have not seen yet may not recognize you yet. Use that to your advantage."

The group nodded. "I'll go with Venus, Saturn, Mars, Neptune, Uranus, and Pluto. Luna, you can go with the Starlights, Kakyuu, and Mercury," Artemis said.

"But that leaves our group uneven," complained Luna.

"You have Mercury—she's smart enough for two people." Artemis winked at her. "Let's go."

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"My Queen," said a short pink-haired girl in a dark purple sailor suit. "You are truly beautiful, and yet so strong. I am so happy you are here."

"Well, thank you—Sailor Cyllene, correct?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"What abilities do you possess?"

"Well," the scout said shyly, "I wield the power of lightning, like you, though it always turns out to be pink and purple, and it's not as powerful as yours."

"That's very interesting. Maybe I could show you a few tricks I've learned to control the lightning skills."

"I would be honored, Your Majesty."

"Queen Litana?" Io stepped up to her throne and knelt on knee before rising again.

"Yes?"

"May I have this dance?" The music was still playing in harmonious joy.

"But of course. I thought you would never ask. Excuse me, Cyllene." Queen Litana stepped down from her throne to take Io's hand.

As they danced, Io whispered in her ear, "You know that you're glowing?"

"What?" And she noticed she was. A beautiful green glow surrounded her.

"I believe you are very happy. I'm glad I brought out your true glow."

Suddenly, everyone fell silent—even the music players. Litana and Io turned around to look the source of everyone's silence. Standing in the doorway of the grand room was Prince Darien and Eternal Sailor Moon.

_Oh dear, I wonder how this will turn out. Is she upset with me for taking over? I'm so happy though—for the first time in a long time. Dear Serena, do not be angry, _Litana prayed.

"Queen Litana, we have come to speak with you," stated Prince Darien.

Io stared hard at Prince Darien. "Have you come to rebel yourselves?"

"Actually, I was thinking we would just talk," said Sailor Moon, smiling hopefully.

Io kept staring at Darien. "You are here to take back over. Litana, my love, will you let them do this to you?"

She looked into her lover's eyes. "But Sailor Moon said they just wanted to chat."

"My Queen, do not be so naïve. They are here to ruin you!"

"That's not true!" shouted Sailor Moon. "Lita, it's just me. Just a girl talk, okay? No hard feelings, I promise you."

Io turned to the blonde heroine. "You are the Moon Princess, granddaughter of the conniving king of the moon. I was told he was to be trusted—'til the truth came out, anyhow. And you, Darien—you are certainly no better. You are kin to the people of the Earth—people quite familiar with lies and treachery. You stand there ready to grab your sword. Don't make me have to duel you."

"Io! No!" Litana shouted.

"Very well then, if that is what you want." The two men rushed together, swords drawn.

"Darien!" Sailor Moon came up to Queen Litana. "Lita, please help." Swords clashed and echoed throughout the hall.

"I know not how to stop Io. And it's Litana."

"Oh." Sailor Moon furrowed her brow. "Why did you have me locked up?"

"I didn't. Who did that to you?"

"Ganymede and Thermisto."

"Trust me, it was no intention of mine to have you hurt in any way. I do feel guilty for taking your place as queen, but I feel like I am home. I feel like this is where I am supposed to be right now."

"There's something I need to tell you—" Sailor Moon was cut off by Europa. "Look, my queen! More traitors!"

"How many times do I have to tell you that they are not traitors?" Litana inquired. "They are misguided."

Standing in the doorway were Sailor Moon's scouts and the cats. "Lita!" called Sailor Mars. "Why have you kidnapped our princess?"

"It's Litana."

Io and Darien kept fighting, twisting and turning to avoid the other. "I tire of you, Darien! Can you not surrender?"

"Sound like you are the one who needs to," remarked Darien.

Turning her head from the ongoing fight, Queen Litana turned to her former companions. "I believe you are here by mistake. It was not I who took Sailor Moon. I still think of you as friends, so long as you do not stand in my way. I only wish for peace, same as you, but I also want the glory of what Jupiter is and always will be."

"So, you're not planning to take over Earth?" inquired Sailor Mars.

"You're not planning to take over Earth?" repeated Sailor Europa.

"No I am not."

"But—Hotaru's prediction…" Luna's voice trailed off. "Sailor Saturn?" The scout's eyes had dilated.

Returning to normal, Sailor Saturn announced, "They are here."

"Who is?" asked Sailor Neptune.

Before anyone else could speak again, a loud rumbling earthquake shook the room (though this is Jupiter, perhaps it should be called a jupiterquake). It stopped the swordfighting of Io and Darien.

"I tire of this. Litana, you are not truly keeping Jovians in your mindset. Therefore, I resolve to fix this problem," announced Ganymede.

"What are you talking about?" demanded Io.

"Ah, dear Io. You have blinded our queen with so much love that she cannot see the true goal of Jupiter. She too has become passive. I had a backup plan in the case of this—I would like to introduce—Andromeda." Ganymede gestured towards the ceiling. It crashed to the floor, and a woman with long, wavy black hair and dressed in a long purple dress landed in the middle of the room. "Or should I say, Queen Andromeda."

"Traitor!" yelled Io.

"We'll see who's the traitor. Andromeda?"

The woman raised her hands and released a large, pulsating beam of purple light at Io. It hit him and knocked him to the wall of the room. "Io!" screamed Queen Litana. She ran to his side.

"Oh no you don't." Andromeda raised her hands again, ready to attack Litana. As soon as the glow appeared in her hands, a large rod came and knocked the beam upwards. "What the…?"

Sailor Moon smiled in satisfaction. "You are not attacking my best friend."

"You shall pay for that, little twerp. There's no escaping this." With that, Queen Andromeda took aim at Sailor Moon.


	15. Chapter 15 Formation

"Serena!" cried Darien. It was too late. A large blast of light hit the moon princess and knocked her across the room.

Andromeda looked satisfied. "I am through with you petty people for now. Come, my dear Ganymede—let us fulfill our destiny. Let us go to this Earth that you spoke of." With that, she touched Ganymede's arm and disappeared with him.

The other Sailor Scouts stood in shock. The Jovian scouts ran to Io while Sailor Moon's group ran to her side. "Sailor Moon…" said Sailor Mars. Darien bent down next to his blonde-haired heroine. "My love…please wake up. You told me not to give up. Please don't give up now."

Sailor Star Fighter sat on the other side of Sailor Moon's still body. "Sailor Moon, true queen and savior, please wake up. We need you."

Queen Litana appeared next to the group. "Io appears to be all right. I think Andromeda hit Sailor Moon with a much harder force, though."

Luna nodded. "Nothing is getting her up…and with every moment she is down, the heavier her breathing is. I don't know if she'll make it," she choked.

"Come on Luna, Sailor Moon's tough. We just need to get her up," Artemis remarked. "Darien, do you have any ideas?"

The prince nodded. He bent down over her and began to speak. "Oh golden crystal of Earth's light, please bring my dear Serena to life. Leave her not in the darkness of death; give her the moment of eternal breath." Then he kissed her softly. A golden glow surrounded the couple. When he came up, Sailor Moon opened her eyes.

"Darien?"

"Sailor Moon…" he said, smiling. "Welcome back."

Io came up to the group. "I apologize Darien for causing you strife. It appears that we have a common enemy now."

"Yes, that Andromeda woman. Who is she, anyway?" questioned Sailor Neptune.

Luna answered, "Andromeda is a nearby galaxy, besides our own Milky Way. They do things differently in other galaxies; in that particular galaxy, Andromeda is the queen and ruler of it. Here, well, we have obviously had some issues between the planets as to who the real queen is. That is a matter to be decided later. Obviously, there is no title such as Queen Milky Way. What a silly name that would be!"

"So she's looking to expand her empire?" asked Sailor Venus.

Artemis replied, "It would appear so. What we need to do is send her back to where she belongs."

"This is certainly a twist in all of our plans," Io remarked. "Here we are, squabbling about who should rule our little solar system, and another Queen comes in while we turn our heads."

"Well, this is not going to go unnoticed," Litana said. "I will make sure that woman pays for hurting you and Sailor Moon."

"So now we must go back to Earth?" wondered Sailor Mars.

"Yes, we must. There is something I would like to know though—how did you manage to get here before us, Prince Darien?" questioned Artemis.

Prince Darien replied, "The power of the Golden Crystal led me here."

"Golden Crystal?" repeated Litana.

"Yes, it is the crystal of power for earth, much like Sailor Moon's Imperial Crystal. It was given to me by Helios—remember? My powers are finally fully awakening."

"Just as I thought they would," said Luna.

"And so my crystal glowed, and I knew something was wrong. Thanks to Luna's email, I knew the trouble had to be here. The closer I came, the more my crystal glowed. I just knew where to go." He turned to Sailor Moon. "I heard you cry for me. I was so close already that it was not hard to miss. You led me to you."

Kakyuu spoke. "I think with our crystals combined, we may be able to stop Andromeda from wrecking havoc on Earth."

"You have a crystal?" asked Sailor Pluto.

"Yes, it is known as the Ruby Crystal. I understand that all planets and moons have their own crystals, though only few have the most powerful ones."

"Well, three crystals versus one—can't be that hard to defeat Andromeda," said Sailor Star Healer.

Luna said, "Yes, but Andromeda is a formidable enemy. I have heard rumors that she was in league with the Negaverse itself."

"That's comforting," Sailor Mars said sarcastically.

"Who is this Negaverse?" asked Princess Kakyuu.

"We'll explain later," said Luna. "Right now, we need to go to Earth."

Queen Litana offered, "I will come with you. My Jovian scouts, if you so wish to save our galaxy, you may want to come as well. I do not mean to disappoint any of you, though you have to admit that Ganymede is a traitor to our world."

"I will come," said Sailor Cyllene.

"Me too," spoke Sailor Europa.

"And me!" yelled Sailor Callisto.

"I believe that we will all come, my lady," remarked Adrastea.

"Then to Earth! Let us go!" commanded Queen Litana.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"Ah, Ganymede. This is such a docile planet compared to some of the ones I've faced. Sure, these humans hurt and kill each other, but they are not in the state of chaos that some of the others were in." Queen Andromeda turned to her partner as they stood on a hill in Tokyo. "So you said this is the home of the Scouts on Earth? Surely they will come racing back to save their homes. Only, it will be too late by then."

Ganymede inquired, "What do you intend to do first?"

"Mind control. I think that would be better than just straight up blowing the entire place to smithereens. I'll do that with lower-level countries and such, but this place is quite advanced. Plus, if their families are against them, surely it will give the scouts difficulty. Turning this entire place against the scouts will give you and me the advantage. We will have an army of thousands, maybe millions when I am through."

Ganymede smirked. "Then let us begin world domination. After this, nothing will stand in our way, my love."

They kissed. Andromeda said, "When we take over, you will surely be my king."

"I am honored."

"You should be. Now, to the nearest communications base. We will begin our plan by infiltrating their radio and television commands."


	16. Chapter 16 Returning to Earth

Streaks of light flashed through the sky in Tokyo. They landed in the same spot that some of them had been before. The group was significantly larger this time, with new lights among them.

Still in her royal clothes, Litana stood with her faithful Jovian scouts, aside from the rest of the group. It was an awkward thing, the title of Queen and the truth of the matter, but that was to be dealt with later. Right now, the most important thing, Litana and Serena decided, was that they needed to defeat Andromeda.

Sailor Moon looked at her feline advisor. "Okay Luna, where might this Andromeda go first? What is the most obvious weak spot?" This question brought about strange looks from the rest of her group, for they had not known her to be so straightforward and serious before.

Even Luna was taken aback. She cleared her throat and spoke. "I'm not exactly sure where they would strike first. Andromeda may have taken a few pages out of the Negaverse's book and tried to take over people's energies. I'm not exactly sure what her method of destruction is, per se."

"Well, we don't have much time to lose. If I know Ganymede, he wants to get things done as fast as possible," said Sailor Europa. "He always wants to be ahead and finished."

"That may be his weakness then," said Artemis.

Suddenly, the group heard loud yelling. "It sounds like someone's fighting," observed Sailor Venus.

Artemis replied, "I bet it's because of Andromeda. Let's go check it out."

When the group arrived at the streets, they were met with a chaotic scene. People were fighting each other, screaming and kicking. "Wow. This is crazy," remarked Sailor Mars.

Abruptly, a group of several men went for the girls, lunging at them. "Let's get out of here!" yelled Luna. "They're obviously out of their minds; fighting them would be no use. To Serena's house!" The sailor scouts turned and ran, dashing so that the angry men would not follow them. Huffing and puffing, they finally reached Serena's doorstep. "Let's hurry and sneak in," Luna said.

"Oh, like her parents wouldn't notice us coming in….come on, Luna," moaned Artemis.

"It's the only shot we have. There are more people coming after us!"

So they all ran into Serena's house. "Strange place, this is…I would not suppose a former princess lived here," remarked Sailor Callisto. Litana shot Callisto a look. The girl fell silent.

"Detransform everybody. Then we will figure out a plan and what the cause of all this madness is," Luna said.

Before anyone could do so, however, Serena's parents walked in. They were unlike their normal selves, however. Their eyes were glazed over and their bodies moved stiffly but steadily. "It's like they're zombies," Sailor Moon whispered.

"I think you're right. We need to leave here as well. Sorry everyone. Perhaps your apartment, Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune, would be better?" questioned Luna.

Sailor Neptune nodded. "There should be no one else there."

Again, the scouts ran from strange people. As Sailor Moon looked back, she could not help but feel depressed. _It's all my fault…I should have been here to prevent this. What has happened to the ones I love? What will happen to the others? I CANNOT lose anyone again!_

An agitated cat's voice broke into her thoughts. "Sailor Moon! Move it!" Luna ordered. "There's nothing you can do right now."

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"Ganymede, I believe our plan is working. And best of all, no meddling little scouts to deal with—or those pathetic wannabe queens. They all have no power compared to mine," declared Queen Andromeda.

"Of course, my lady. Your power rivals that of all the universe," Ganymede replied.

"You should do well to remember that. Keep this loop of our video running through all of the stations. I'll start on the loop for the radio. Soon everyone will know our names and bow down to us! Soon this world will be ours!" The queen laughed evilly.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Arriving at the apartment of Amara and Michelle was no easy feat, but the scouts managed it. It was a bit crowded with so many people, but with a little maneuvering, everyone managed to squeeze in. "Well, at least we have a good view of the city," remarked Sailor Mercury. "We can see exactly what is going on."

"Yes, and it is all so chaotic. This is definitely Andromeda's work," said Artemis.

"Well, there's no need for our sailor forms at the moment," stated Sailor Pluto, turning back into her civilian form. Everyone else followed suit.

Litana suggested, "Turn on the television. Perhaps there is something there."

Turning on the television produced a vision of the Queen Andromeda herself, voicing over and over again "I AM THE FUTURE RULER OF YOUR PITIFUL LITTLE SYSTEM. YOU SHALL OBEY ME AND NO OTHER. THOSE WHO ARE CALLED THE SAILOR SCOUTS ARE TO BE YOUR ENEMIES. KILL THEM! DESTROY THEM! LEAVE THEM BEGGING FOR MERCY! FOR I, ANDROMEDA, WILL RULE YOU—NOT THEM! I AM QUEEN!" After this message, she raised her arms and produced an energy beam, hypnotizing and colorful. It was only when Luna switched off the television that the scouts in the room came back to their senses.

"Any more of that, and you would be on her side!" pronounced Luna.

Serena shrugged her shoulders. "Sorry Luna."

"Yes, you certainly would be sorry. Fortunately, cats aren't prey to human fallacies such as that. Apparently she's using hypnosis and brainwashing to take over this place."

"Isn't there any way to combat it?" asked Seiya.

"Well of course—you have to destroy the source."

"There's a television station not too far from here," said Trista. "Perhaps we should check it out."

Mina asked, "What about the radio? Is there anything on that?"

Luna replied, "I bet there is. Let's not find out, shall we? I don't want you to lose your focus."

Serena stood by the window, looking out into the city. She furrowed her brow, apparently concentrating on something outside. While the others started to form a plan of attack, Darien walked over to her. "Serena?"

She turned to face him. It was difficult to look into his eyes knowing how he had acted on Jupiter. "Yes, Darien?" Her voice quivered a bit.

He noticed. "Serena, I didn't mean to frighten you. I was severely angry and I should have controlled myself. You know I am a very passionate person—I love you, and no one else."

She looked down. _I want to believe him, I really do. But how do I trust this man, one so willing to kill another like that?_ "Darien…" She sighed. "Darien, I love you too. I just wondered what happened to you. You would normally never be so…so vengeful. I love the peaceful side of you—the one that is as peaceful as I am."

"When it comes to you, it's hard for me. I suppose you are my weakness."

"Don't let Andromeda know that," she said with a smile.

"I won't, believe me. Not if I can help it, anyway."

"I just think we need to talk…soon…"

"About what?"

"About everything." This new side of Darien was going to take some getting used to, and Serena wasn't sure she wanted to be a part of it.

"Please, don't let my little mistake cost us so much." Darien looked concerned. "I just want you to be happy and safe."

"I am…just don't scare me like that, okay?"

"I'll try." He leaned in for a kiss, but she turned her head aside. He kissed her cheek. "Baby, please…"

"Not here, Darien." Serena glanced at him, giving him a silent but obvious look, which simply told him that another time would be best for his romantics.

"Serena?" Luna called. "Come over here—we've got a plan."

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

The people had now calmed down, and were all walking around very stiffly and out of focus. Their bodies appeared to be disintegrating, even as they walked. Several ran into walls, as if they knew what where they were going. A streamline of certain people were walking in and out of the television station, bringing in different things, such as jewelry and food, and they left with nothing in their hands.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Sailor Moon asked skeptically. She and her scouts were standing outside of the television station with Litana and her scouts. The large group was hiding in the nearby alley, away from the people.

"Well, the Luna Pen is meant for all sorts of disguises. Surely it would do this," answered Luna.

"But seriously…"

Sailor Mars interrupted. "Just do it, Sailor Moon. Those people out there don't have a lot of time left."

The blonde heroine shot her friend a dirty look. "Fine." She raised her Luna Pen in the air and called out begrudgingly, "All right, turn me into a…a zombie." Lights flashed and swirled around her. When the transformation was complete, Sailor Moon was a very pale and shabby looking zombie, complete with torn clothes and uneven, shaggy hair. "This is absolutely awful. I mean, look at my hair!"

"Shut up, Sailor Moon. We have to do what we have to do. Now you need to go inside where that line of people is going and find us a way in. Talk to us through the communicator."

"Ugh." She walked off, shaking her hands. Following Luna's orders, Sailor Moon obediently went to the line and went inside. She had been in this station before, though it had been a few years. The last time she was here, she was investigating energy being sucked from winners of a radio show. Now she was trying to find out where the source of the zombie power was coming from. She took a right down the corridor, praying she was going the right way. "Aha," she muttered to herself. Spotting an old entrance for janitors, she went in its direction and opened the door. "Hey guys." The door had opened right to where the scouts were standing. They looked rather surprised and a little startled from the door opening so quickly. "Didn't you see this door here?"

"It was probably locked from the inside, anyway," remarked Sailor Mars.

"Can I change now, Luna?"

"Not yet, Sailor Moon. We need you to stay like that for a little while longer. You go first into the hallways and let us know when it is clear. Try to close doors to prevent more people from coming in," ordered Luna.

Sailor Moon sighed and ran down the hallway, closing doors and giving the thumbs-up for everyone to come inside. "So where is this energy coming from, Sailor Mercury?"

"Well, according to my calculations, it should be down this particular hallway and to the right," the blue-haired scout said, pointing.

Artemis said, "All right everyone. Ready yourselves."

"Can I change noooow?" Sailor Moon whined.

"Yes, I suppose so," Luna replied.

The scouts walked down the hall together to the lair of Queen Andromeda.


	17. Chapter 17 Taking Sides

What was once the command control room of the local television station became transformed to Andromeda's control room of pain. The chairs for the newscasters were replaced by two very regal thrones, brought to Andromeda by her obedient zombies. The entire place was covered in black cloths, hanging from the ceiling and over the floor. Queen Andromeda herself was standing at the controls in the back of the room. She turned the knobs, enjoying watching people suffer on the telescreen as they performed their final duties of serving her. "This is quite enjoyable. With the internet connection, I can also broadcast this if I like—to the entire world! Ah humans make this so easy. It's almost not even fun—there's no challenge to it at all."

"Well, we don't want anything to stand in our way, now do we, Queen Andromeda?" inquired Ganymede.

"We sure don't."

"Well then it's a shame that we have to be here then," a voice announced.

"What the…?" Andromeda stuttered. "Oh, those scouts again!"

"Yep!" shouted the voice. "You betcha it's us! And what's more, we are here to stop you!" Out of the shadows stepped a familiar blonde-haired heroine. "I am Sailor Moon, the champion of justice. On behalf of the moon—and certainly, the rest of our galaxy—I will punish you!"

"Oh, like I'm scared of one little moon scout!" Andromeda sneered.

"It's not just her," spoke Litana/Queen Jupiter. "You have the rest of us to reckon with! I am Litana, Queen of the planet Jupiter. I will make sure that you will not rule this galaxy of ours!"

"So just two scouts?" Ganymede asked.

"No!" answered a chorus of voices. More scouts stepped into what little light was left in the room.

"I am Sailor Venus, champion of love. On behalf of Venus, I shall punish you!"

"I am Sailor Mars, champion of fire. On behalf of Mars, I too shall punish you!"

"I am Sailor Mercury, guardian of truth and knowledge. On behalf of Mercury, I will make sure you will not win this battle!"

"I am Sailor Saturn, the Messiah of rebirth and death. On behalf of Saturn, I will punish you, even if it means destroying this world."

"I am Sailor Uranus, fighter for the kingdom of the Moon! On behalf of Uranus, I will take you down!"

"I am Sailor Neptune, guardian of the sea and all that lives in it. On behalf of the planet Neptune, I will drown you in waves of righteousness!"

"I am Sailor Pluto, guardian and keeper of the gates of time. On behalf of Pluto, I will punish you as well."

"Sailor Scouts Unite!"

"And that's not all," replied a sultry voice from the shadows. "There are others who wish to make Ganymede pay for his treachery and his disloyalty. Loyalty is everything to us, and if there is someone we cannot trust, then there is a weakness in our bonds. For years we have been together, and to have someone betray us all is an act of a cowardly man! For the sake of Jupiter, I am Sailor Europa! I shall make sure you pay for what you have done, Ganymede."

"And she's not the only one," replied another scout, standing defiantly in the light.

"Oh jeez," Ganymede groaned. "If you are going to announce yourselves individually, this is going to take forever."

"Too bad," replied the scout. "I am Sailor Metis, scout of light!" the girl announced, flipping her red hair. "On behalf of Jupiter and for her sake, I shall fight against you!"

"And there's more," announced Sailor Europa. "I am Sailor Europa, user of ice and storms! For Jupiter's sake, I shall punish you too!"

The calls of scouts kept coming, stepping from the shadows as they announced their arrival. "I am Sailor Callisto, sailor scout of illusion! You may be deceived to believe that you will win, but I will make sure that is only a deception, and not reality! For Jupiter!"

"I am Sailor Andrastea, the invisible scout. On behalf of Jupiter and the entire solar system, I will make sure you will not prevail!"

"I am Sailor Anake, defender of purity! On behalf of Jupiter, I will not let you defile this planet!"

"I am Sailor Helike, soldier of reversibility! On behalf of Jupiter, I will throw you attacks right back at you!"

"I am Sailor Thebe, guardian of the elements. On behalf of Thebe and Jupiter, I shall fight you!"

"I am Sailor Amalthea, empowerment of the rings of Jupiter. For her sake and all of ours, I shall make sure you are defeated!"

"I am Sailor Orthosie, warrior of the light and darkness. On behalf of Jupiter, Ganymede, you shall pay for your treachery!"

"I am Sailor Euanthe, expert on the mists and magic of Jupiter. Andromeda, you shall surely pay for this!"

"I am Sailor Thyone, champion for the righteous and for the peace of mind. With my mental strength and all my might, I shall defend this galaxy for Jupiter!"

"I am Sailor Leda, guardian of the waves of love. No passion shall be interrupted, and peace shall reign again!"

"I am Sailor Hermippe, ruler of wild fire. On behalf of Jupiter and our precious galaxy, you shall be punished!"

"I am Sailor Praxidike, soldier of strength and fury! On behalf of Jupiter and even the Moon kingdom, I shall crush you both!"

"I am Sailor Mneme, guardian of mystery and darkness. With my black magic, and on behalf of Jupiter, you shall regret this day!"

"I am Sailor Eurydome, chief of metallurgy. With my rod, on behalf of Jupiter, you will be disciplined!"

"I am Sailor Iocaste, guardian of the gates of Jupiter! To pass to her and permeate throughout this galaxy, you will have to go through me!"

"I am Sailor Cyllene, wielding the power of the thunders of Jupiter! On behalf of Jupiter and for Queen Litana, I shall punish you!"

"I am Sailor Thelxinoe, sailor of static electricity! On behalf of Jupiter, I will shock you into oblivion!" Upon hearing this, Sailor Venus burst into giggles.

"What's so funny?" hissed Sailor Mars.

"_Static…_electricity…seriously? OMG!" her blonde friend chuckled. Mars rolled her eyes.

The introductions continued. "I am Sailor Harpalyke, eye of the storm. On behalf of my moon and Jupiter, I shall punish you!"

"I am Sailor Arche, sailor scout of thunder and fire! On behalf of Jupiter, I too shall punish you!"

"I am Sailor Isonoe, the scout of teleportation! On behalf of Jupiter, I will defend this people!"

"I am Sailor Autonoe, guardian of life and harvest! On behalf of Jupiter and our dear moon friends, I will defeat you!"

"I am Sailor Pasithee, scout of storms! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall bring about a storm of destruction!"

"I am Sailor Erinome, warrior of combat! On behalf of Jupiter, I will defend all that is good and just!"

"I am Sailor Aitne, champion of the air! On behalf of Jupiter and the moon Aitne, I will punish you!"

Four particular scouts stood out together. "I am Sailor Kale, warrior of winter and snow! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall freeze you!"

"I am Sailor Carme, scout of spring! On behalf of Jupiter, I will punish you!"

"I am Sailor Himalia, sailor of summer and heat! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall fight against you!"

"I am Sailor Kalyke, autumn's guardian and keeper. On behalf of Jupiter, I shall defend this planet and the galaxy!"

"Who are they?" whispered Sailor Saturn to Luna.

"Looks like they are the scouts of seasons. They are quite powerful together. Their abilities are said to be legendary," replied the feline.

"I am Sailor Taygete, scout of poison and disease! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall help defend this place!"

"I am Sailor Sponde, scientist and scout of atoms! On behalf of Jupiter and this planet, I shall punish you!"

"I am Sailor Lysithea, guardian of honesty and modesty! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall turn your selfishness against you!"

"I am Sailor Megaclite, the rocky sailor scout! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall guard this planet and the entire galaxy!"

"I am Sailor Aoede, guardian of youth and beauty! On behalf of Jupiter, I too shall punish you!"

"I am Sailor Pasiphae, scout of telekinesis! On behalf of Jupiter and my own moon, I will fight against you!"

"I am Sailor Callirrhoe, guardian of sleep and dreams! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall punish you!"

"I am Sailor Carpo, warrior of speed! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall battle you!"

"I am Sailor Euporie, the sailor scout of harmony! On behalf of Jupiter and the Milky Way, I shall punish you too!"

"I am Sailor Chaldene, guardian of faith! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall believe and keep battling you until the end!"

"I am Sailor Elara, warrior of electric fire! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall protect this place and defend my friends!"

"I am Sailor Hegemone, scout of sandstorms! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall punish you!"

"I am Sailor Eukelade, guardian of justice and fairness! On behalf of Jupiter and Sailor Moon, I will make wrongs right and fight your evil!"

"I am Sailor Io, lover of Jupiter and possessor of volcanic eruption! On behalf of my lovely Jupiter, I will defend her and make sure you pay for your insolence!"

"And I," said a stately queen, "am Queen Litana, ruler of the planet Jupiter, warrior of lightning, and fighter for the innocent! On behalf of Jupiter, I shall punish you!"

"Finally," stated Ganymede. "Are you through? Or have you forgotten—I am Sailor Ganymede, scout of shadows and fear! And I am not alone!"

A new scout stepped out from behind Ganymede. "I am Sailor Thermisto, the scout who can walk through walls. I am prepared this time. You shall not touch me!"

"Damn," said Prince Darien. "I thought we got rid of that guy."

Andromeda crossed to the center of the room. "You know who I am. I am Queen Andromeda, soon to be your own queen. Bow to me, or face the consequences!"

"No! You turned the entire town to zombies. We cannot forgive that," said Sailor Neptune.

"If you serve me, they will be released," taunted Andromeda.

"She's lying!" shouted Sailor Mars. "I can tell. She just wants our powers!"

"But what if she really wants to free her prisoners? What if we could free all those people?" asked Sailor Euanthe.

"Don't, Euanthe. We could potentially trap ourselves," stated Litana.

Another scout stepped forward. "But you always told us to believe in ourselves and to free the innocent. You taught us to believe in hope! I'm not going to stand by! Andromeda, I'll trade myself."

"No, Isonoe, don't!"

Andromeda smirked. "So be it then." She raised her arms, and a powerful dark force raced to Sailor Isonoe, completely covering him in impenetrable darkness. In several moments, the scouts watched as the darkness sank into Isonoe. Isonoe raised his head up. In the next instant, he appeared at Andromeda's side.

"So maybe you were right, girls. But the only way I will release these people is if every one of you came by my side," Andromeda spoke.

"Isonoe!" cried out Litana. Isonoe gave her a cold, hard stare.

"Well, then, it's that simple. Let's give ourselves up," said Sailor Thexinoe.

Litana looked at him, appalled. "You just said no more than a minute ago about how you wanted to shock the enemy!"

Thexinoe replied, "Well, it's surprising. And it's for the best. Take me, too." Again, Andromeda repeated the process. After the darkness entered him, he crossed to Andromeda's side and knelt before her.

Andromeda gazed at the scouts before her. "Next?"

**...........................................................................................................**

**Little author's note: I took quite a while thinking of these names. I do appreciate _amaramichelle_ for pointing out the difficulty and the time it took to write out each moon of Jupiter and their powers. This is why this chapter abruptly ends; I can promise, however, that you will definitely see more from me soon. This chapter was especially time-consuming to write for that particular reason.**

**You may even see unique attack moves from these new scouts, though I'd hate to give away the ending... :D**


	18. Chapter 18 The Battle Begins

"This is crazy," said Io. "We can't give in like this! We _outnumber_ them by outrageous odds! Let's combine our forces and rid this evil!"

Litana turned to him. "It's not always that easy, Io. You know that. Odds_ are_ in our favor, but what about our friends on _their_ side?"

"We can turn them back. I'm sure of it."

"My poor scouts, though…I should have protected them."

"You didn't know, my lady. Now we do. Let's not let the enemy take advantage of our weakness."

Sailor Moon raised her rod. "Surely Andromeda, you understand that we must defeat you. Now only have you enslaved these people but you have deceived our scouts."

Andromeda laughed. "I don't believe they were yours to begin with."

"They are our friends. That's all that matters. Thermisto and Ganymede, too—I'm sure you deceived them and filled their heads with your trickery. It won't work on me, or the rest of us."

"For your information, Thermisto and Ganymede found me before I found them. They came looking for me a while back during their search for a queen. They knew they had a loyalty to find Litana, but once they became dissatisfied with her plans, I came into the picture—or did you miss out on that part, blondie?" Andromeda glared at Sailor Moon.

"Thexinoe and Isonoe were innocent though. They are not yours—they are their own free persons. Release them and leave this place, or you shall see our fury!" exclaimed Sailor Callisto.

Andromeda raised her arms and blasted purple light straight through Callisto. The young scout screamed as she was fell through the glass window. She did not get up after she fell.

"Callisto!" Litana screamed. She ran over to the young girl's side. Blood was dripping from Callisto's face. "No…" Litana bowed her head.

"Unless you want the bloodshed to continue, I suggest you give in," recommended Queen Andromeda. "I am not going to be as generous as your former enemies. I seek not only energy—I seek more than that! I want your entire soul! And until I get what I came for, you will see more of this."

"She is really serious," remarked Sailor Moon quietly.

Luna hissed at her. "Well, don't hesitate. Use your power!"

"Right then. Starlight Crystal Blast!"

The bright, shining light of the Moon scout's power filled the room as the beam raced to Andromeda. Raising her hand, Andromeda blasted her own evil purple energy beam, destroying the pure light.

"No!" Sailor Moon yelled.

"You pathetic moon senshi. What kind of warrior are you? Are you going to kill with…love? And light? It doesn't work that way, princess."

Sailor Moon gritted her teeth and shouted again, "Starlight Crystal BLAST!" A stronger beam erupted, but was still destroyed by Andromeda.

Litana walked over to Sailor Moon. "You are not the only one here. Scouts, let us battle!"

Ganymede shouted, "Shadow Evolution!"

A split second later, Sailor Uranus yelled, "World Shaking!"

Their attacks passed each other. Uranus's attack knocked Ganymede off his feet, while Ganymede's attack enveloped Sailor Moon in total darkness. A moment later, a light flashed and disintegrated the shadow. "Oooh just you wait. I'm going to get you for that!" Sailor Moon declared.

Shouts echoed as the scouts announced their attacks.

"Glacier Storm!" yelled Sailor Europa.

Sailor Isonoe disappeared from the other side of the room and appeared in front of Europa, knocking her on her feet. He appeared and disappeared, each time attacking her from a different side.

"Hey, that's not fair," stated Sailor Saturn. "Death Reb—"

"Don't!" Sailor Pluto interrupted. "You might hit Europa."

"Well, what do you suggest then?"

Sailor Pluto furrowed her eyes for a moment. "Well, I could always stop time."

Sailor Mercury said, "Last time you did that, you were killed. It's taboo."

"I know. But we may not have much choice."

"There has to be another way," Sailor Venus said.

"Well, girls, don't forget your other enemies," Artemis pointed out.

At this time, Sailor Thermisto ran for the scouts. "Sparkling Flames!" shouted Sailor Elara. The attack went straight through Thermisto, but he turned and ran in her direction instead.

"Elara!" shouted Litana.

It was too late, however. Thermisto ran to her and solidified his body before he ran into her. The little scout fell back into the wall.

"You'll pay for that!" declared Sailor Eukelade. "Eukelade Golden Balances!" From her hands appeared a set of shining gold balances that swung in Thermisto's direction and wrapped around his neck. It took him off guard, but he made himself permeable and they clanged on the floor.

"You nearly choked me there, missy. Now, my turn." He ran in her direction.

On the other side of the room, the battle escalated. The moon scouts were having trouble trying to deter Ganymede's attacks. "We need to combine our powers," Sailor Mercury commanded. "It's worked for us in the past."

Sailor Neptune asked, "Do we invest it all in Sailor Moon, or do we just combine our powers outside?"

"Perhaps outside is best," Sailor Moon said. "I don't we should put all of our eggs in one basket, so to speak."

Litana, not hearing this conversation, blasted her own power to Andromeda. "Jupiter Typhoon!" The room suddenly became very windy and papers, chairs, and other pieces flew around the room. The scouts ducked in order to avoid the heavy objects. Thermisto himself was blown across the room. _I guess his powers don't prevent winds from reaching him_, Sailor Moon observed. A plan was starting to form in her mind…if the wind ever died down…

Andromeda, infuriated by Litana's strong power, shot her purple energy beams in her general direction. Instead of hitting Litana, however, the beams hit Sailor Venus instead. "Venus!" Sailor Moon shouted, running to her friend.

Hearing Sailor Moon's panicky voice made Litana stop the typhoon. She also ran over to Venus's side. "Venus?" she quietly asked, with tears glistening in her eyes. "Oh no, this is all my fault. My stupid powers…"

"Don't blame yourself, Litana," Luna said. "You were trying to fight the enemy. It will be all right. Right now, we need to follow some sort of plan. I agree with the combination of powers. As a team, we are stronger than anything."

To their side, the Jupiter scouts, angry that Andromeda attacked a dear friend of their queen's, prepared their attacks.

"Jovian Sandstorm!" shouted Sailor Hegemone.

"Rock Smash!" yelled Sailor Megaclite.

"Atomizing Orbs!" called Sailor Sponde.

"Eukelade Golden Balances!" exclaimed Sailor Eukelade.

"Aoede Beautiful Triads!" shouted Sailor Aoede.

"Super Shining Halos!" declared Sailor Anake.

Their varied attacks, aimed at Andromeda, were all destroyed with one wave of Andromeda's hand.

"We have to keep trying!" commanded Sailor Europa. "Glacier Storm!"

Instead of the icy attack reaching Andromeda, however, it returned—straight for Europa. Another scout jumped in front of her, however. He mumbled incoherently but quickly and held his arms out. The ice went back to Andromeda. Angry that her power was defied, she again sent the attack back. Before it reached halfway across the room, though, the scout had already sent it back. Not expecting the attack to be returned so quickly, Andromeda was hit by the glacier. It didn't freeze her though, as it normally would have.

"Thanks Helike, you saved my life," Europa gasped.

"Hey, don't mention it," the scout replied. He stood in front of her and braced himself for another attack.

Sailor Thelxinoe prepared his attack. He rubbed his hands together and shouted, "Brilliant Static Shock!" A large blast of electricity shot towards Helike. Again, Sailor Helike managed to rebound the attack and send it back, but not without difficulty.

"Helike, are you okay?" Europa inquired worriedly.

"Yes," he gasped, running his hand through his short blonde hair.. "His power is much stronger than before. It's because of Andromeda—she's filled him with a dark power that increases his attack."

"Then let's make sure it doesn't succeed." Europa aimed her attack again. "Glacier Storm!" It went for Thelxinoe, but his "Brilliant Static Shock!" disrupted it.

Another scout stepped forward. "Rod, do not fail me now. Eurydome Bullet Blitz!" Sailor Eurydome's rod broke from halfway down into many pieces and aimed for Thelxinoe. The pieces, all too small for Thelxinoe to defend himself from, swirled around him and shot him in many places. He dropped to his knees in pain. The bullets returned to Eurydome's rod and reassembled to make it complete.

"I think that was a winning attack. Can you do it again?" Sailor Europa asked.

"But of course. Eurydome Bullet Blitz!" Again, the rod disassembled and headed straight for Thelxinoe. However, Andromeda noticed the attack on her companion and sent it back to Eurydome. He managed to cease his attack from backfiring, and reassembled his rod.

"I have had just about enough of you!" Andromeda screamed angrily. She raised her arms and her familiar purple blast, larger and brighter than before, went towards Europa and other Jupiter scouts.

"It's too much for me to hold back! Run for it!" shouted Sailor Helike. Unfortunately, this warning came too late for several of the Jupiter scouts, who were severely burned by the deadly light. There were very few Jovian scouts standing, and this sight was disheartening for the Jovian team.

"Helike!" Europa shouted, running to his side.

"Finish…her…" her blonde companion gasped before he passed out.

At the same time, Sailor Moon and her scouts were battling against Ganymede and Thermisto. "Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!" Sailor Mercury shouted for what seems like the tenth time.

"As I said, girls, combine! Combine!" Luna commanded.

"Mars Flame Sniper!"

"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!"

"Dead Scream!"

"Death Reborn Revolution!"

"Submarine Reflection!"

"Space Sword Blaster!"

"Star Serious Laser!"

"Star Gentle Uterus!"

"Star Sensitive Inferno!"

Kakyuu also put in her own power. "Ruby Fire Crystal!"

"You too, Jupiter…" Luna nudged Litana.

"Jupiter Typhoon!"

"Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss!" shouted Sailor Moon, sealing all of the attacks into one.

Ganymede widened his eyes in terror as the different powerful attacks went to him. "Shadow Evolution!" he shouted, but to no avail. He was enveloped in the light, and forced through a wall on the other side of the room. Thermisto was unable to make himself impenetrable to so many attacks, and was soon through the wall with Thermisto.

"There, that's two down…" said Sailor Moon.

"Queen Litana!" Europa shouted. Litana turned to her, and was dismayed at the number of her scouts who were taken out of action.

"Oh no…" she moaned.

"Litana, we need you and the moon scouts' help. We're down to less than half of our team!"

"We're in this together, okay? We shall avenge our dear friends."

"Are they…?" Sailor Moon asked.

"No, I don't think they're…you know…anyways, I think they're just knocked out. I hope they'll be okay," Litana replied.

Four scouts stood together in a circle near Litana, holding hands and chanting. Suddenly, their voices became louder and light auras appeared around them. They fell silent for a moment, and called out: "Spring!" A green aura appeared around the speaker.

"Summer!" A yellow aura appeared.

"Autumn!" A red aura was seen.

"Winter!" A light blue aura glowed.

"Seasons of the present and the past, see it that we can win at last!"

"The scouts of seasons…" Luna murmured.

The green aura produced blossoms and rain. The yellow aura created heat and light as bright as the sun. The red aura made leaves and wind. The light blue aura became snow and ice. These things rose above the heads of the scouts, combined in one giant swirl, and headed for Andromeda. As usual, she used her purple light to try and attack back, but her blast went straight through it. She then created a large purple bubble around herself, and when the seasons' attacks hit, they bounced off and exploded, leaving different scouts feeling rather cold and others a little too hot.

"You see," Andromeda said mockingly, "you can't defeat me! You just can't! I have the powers of scouts from another universe! There's nothing you can throw at me that I won't be able to defeat!"

"Oh yeah?" said Sailor Harpalyke. "What about this—Eye of Jupiter, lend me your power!" He turned his arms up and began spinning very fast. The other scouts held onto objects, because the faster he spun, the more powerful the winds around him became. Soon, he was like a small tornado, aiming for Andromeda.

Her purple light did no use again; it only was swirled around Harpalyke, causing him to have a purple stripe around the middle. Then Andromeda used a new attack: "Fire Ice!" Flaming icicles headed straight for Harpalyke, but again, were swept into the spiral. Determined, Andromeda tried a different method. "Minute Freeze!"

Suddenly everything in the entire room froze. The scout could only watch in horror and Andromeda ripped apart the cyclone and threw Harpalyke through the ceiling. He fell back down with a sickening crunch.

It was then that Sailor Moon realized what happened. Andromeda had literally frozen time..and still had a good 45 seconds to destroy the scouts before they could even move again.


	19. Chapter 19 An Ending

_After all that we've been through…we're going to die and there's nothing we can do to defend ourselves anymore,_ Sailor Moon thought. It wasn't fair. She had tried so hard to help her scouts.

A mental voice entered her head, which sounded strangely like Luna. _But Serena, you must do more than help your scouts. You must LEAD them._

If only there was some way…Sailor Moon thought with all of her might,_ Scouts, please, if you can hear me, don't let her win. _

A response answered her. _I hear you, my dear Princess._ It felt like it was from Sailor Pluto._ I think I could try to stop time myself; however, you know what that entails…_

_No! There must be another way!_ Sailor Moon thought.

While this mental conversation was going on in just a matter of a few seconds, Andromeda readied herself for her final attack, unaware of their thoughts. "This time, you are mine!" she growled triumphantly. Shadowy balls, pulsing with purple lightning began to grow from her hands. "This world—it is mine! Mine! You have no more chances…and what a shame, too. You would have been great additions to my collection of scouts."

_All right that's it_, grumbled Litana. _I've had it with this woman. I'm breaking this out once and for all!_ She struggled to move, her face turning red, and managed to inch her arms together. Lightning erupted from her palms and encircled her, setting her free of the Minute Freeze curse. "All right, Andromeda! I'll show you what you deserve for messing with my friends! Lend me your powers, my friends--Ultimate Jupiter Typhoon!" Suddenly, a massive storm broke out, more powerful than the one Jupiter had created before.

Andromeda grew angry. "If you keep this up, girl, you are going to get hurt!" The winds continued, so powerful that they were moving the computers around in the room, all aiming for Andromeda. She blew them away with her shadowy spheres, and then aimed them for Litana. However, the winds pushed them back to her. Frustrated, Andromeda sent out more shadow balls to intersect with her first ones. They combined and exploded. The entire room went black, and everyone left was knocked unconscious.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Sailor Moon woke up some time later—it was impossible to tell how long it had been since the explosion. It had been an amazing thing…but what had happened after that? She slowly got up and looked around. She was the first to awaken. _How ironic_, she thought. She glanced over to her left and saw where Andromeda had stood was a smoldering crater. She moved her gaze to where Jupiter/Litana had stood. She was passed out on the ground on her back, with a small trail of blood that ran down her jaw. "Litana?" Sailor Moon crawled closer to her. She noticed that next to Litana was Io, with an arm around her waist. "Litana?" Litana did not respond. She did not even appear to be breathing. "Lita? Oh, please, please wake up!" Sailor Moon cried.

Her shout woke up Sailor Saturn. She sat upright and looked at Sailor Moon. "I warned you…"

Tears flooded down Sailor Moon's face. "And Io, too?"

"He's alive. Only Jupiter is…"

"Don't say it!" Sailor Moon shouted. "No, she can't be…"

The others began to open their eyes and move around. The Jovian scouts noticed their fallen queen, and rushed to her side immediately. "Queen Litana!" cried Sailor Iocaste. "No…and I was supposed to help protect your gates…"

"Oh no, Queen Litana…" sobbed Sailor Callisto. "No…"

Io opened his eyes and raised himself up to look at his lover. "My queen…" He sighed. "I suppose, now, that I speak for everyone—when I say, Queen Serena, that you are our true ruler."

Sailor Moon brushed the tears away from her eyes. "I think maybe that's a bit premature. Maybe..I can fix this…" She held up her rod of power. "My prince?" Darien came to her side. "Put your power with mine…let's bring her back."

She and Prince Darien closed their eyes. The prince put his arms around Serena's on the rod, and together they chanted, "Moon and earth healing power! Moon and earth healing crystals!" A peaceful glow flowed from the hands to Litana's heart. The couple lowered their hands.

Sailor Moon looked at Io. "Do you see her breathing? Because I don't."

Io shook his head. "Not yet…..wait….Litana?" The girl's chest rose. "Litana!"

Litana opened her eyes. "Io?"

"Darling, I thought I had lost you…I tried to help, my love…"

"I know. I felt you. Thank you so much."

"I'm glad you're back, Lita," said Sailor Mars.

"Me too." The queen of Jupiter sat up. "All this royalty drama…just isn't worth fighting about. I know who I love—my friends AND my faithful Jovian scouts. If it's all right with you guys, I think it would be good to ally ourselves with my dear Serena."

"I don't see why not," replied Sailor Io. "After all, without their valuable help, this may not be such a happy ending."

"I'm all for it," agreed Sailor Europa. "What do you think, everyone?" The rest of the scouts cheered. "Then that settles things. You may always be our ruler, Litana, but we also shall be there for Serena."

Sailor Moon nodded happily. "Thank you."

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

The Jovian scouts had left for Jupiter, with the promise from Litana that she would visit them every weekend. Io decided he would stay on earth with his beloved, to protect her and guard her.

The Jovian scouts who had switched sides were welcomed back for their good intentions; however, Thermisto and Ganymede were exiled from the solar system and were told to not return for many years.

The Starlights stayed comfortable in Japan, though Kakyuu occasionally went with Litana and Io to Jupiter for a change of scenery now and then. It had been difficult, but Serena broke the news to Darien about what happened. At first he had been angry, but he was understanding. After convincing him that she would take care of any loose ends with Seiya, she headed to Seiya's place.

Serena knocked on the Starlights' door. Taiki answered it. "Ah, Serena. Yes, I'll tell Seiya you're here. How are you?"

"Great, thanks."

"Awesome. Back in a sec." She disappeared down the hall.

Serena nervously bit her lip. This was not going to be easy.

"Ah, my dumpling! So good to see you!" Seiya called out as she walked to her. "Would you like to go hang out at the park?"

"That would probably be a good idea," Serena agreed.

As they walked along, Seiya talked with Serena about little things—school, their friends, and etcetera. When they reached the park, they found a bench and sat down.

Seiya looked into her blonde friend's eyes. "You truly are beautiful, Serena."

Serena turned pink. "Seiya…"

"Shh…" Seiya leaned closer to Serena.

_I know where this is going, and this time I can stop it_, thought Serena. She put a hand between her and Seiya. "No, Seiya."

"But dumpling…" Seiya appeared disappointed.

"This is what I need to talk to you about. You know I have a boyfriend. I am in love with Darien. I may or may not still be in love with you, but I need to set this straight. Darien is the one I am going to marry one day, Seiya."

Seiya hung her head down. "So no chance for me then?"

Serena shook her head. "I'm afraid not. Don't worry though—I am sure there is someone out there for you. It's just not me, okay? I still want to be your friend. I still care for you…just not that way."

"I understand."

"So friends still?"

"Best friends forever, as you say. Just know, I will do anything for you."

"I know," Serena whispered.

"Good. Now, meatball head, where to next?"

"Hey, only Darien calls me that!"

"So do the others when you're not around—meatball head."

"Why you--!" Serena punched Seiya in the hard while Seiya laughed.

…………………………………..

**And so concludes this chapter and this story. I apologize for how long it took. Let me know what you think!**


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